


TLOZ: The Beginning of the End; A Ghirahim Backstory

by Hitaka5Ever



Series: The Legend of Zelda: The Final Chapter [2]
Category: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms, The Legend of Zelda: Hyrule Warriors, The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword
Genre: Abuse, Backstory, Blood, GanGhira, Ghiradorf, Gore, M/M, Mental Abuse, Multi, Physical Abuse, Porn, Torture, Violence, ganghirazant, ghirahim backstory, ghirazant - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-02-15
Updated: 2016-10-06
Packaged: 2018-05-17 23:51:39
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 7
Words: 24,815
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5889955
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hitaka5Ever/pseuds/Hitaka5Ever
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>(Side story of my fic The Legend of Zelda: The Final Chapter) Ghirahim, a demon with everything he has left to lose, gets a second chance at living when a stranger appears. Follow him and the one who calls himself Ganondorf out of Hell, and into a world where chains no longer hold them back</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This story will explain how Ghirahim met Ganondorf, how he got all of his weapons and became the demon fighter that he is, as well as how he became Ganondorf's Second in Command of his armies. Zant will also become part of the main cast at a later chapter, but this mostly focuses on Ghirahim and his backstory (think of him as a reincarnation from Skyward Sword)

_All my life they said I would never be loved or cared for, and I would suffer by the hands of those very same monsters until the end of time. No one will love me, they said. No one will care for me, they said. Death is too good for me, they said. Ever since then, I accepted my fate and lived in everlasting pain._

_But that all changed, when_ _**you** _ _came along…_

* * *

It was intriguing how much a stranger could show you the world through such unrelenting eyes. That is truly what a simple demon thought on that day when a mysterious man arrived at the small town of Sundiar. The demon would forever remember the sacrifice the man made for him when he took him far, far away from that terrible place. He could never forget that fateful day…

The sky had been filled with dark clouds and it was cold. In a small town, a bell gonged in the distance, temporarily drowning out the sound of the heavy rainfall above. Thunder rumbled softly miles away. Near the front of town, lightning lit the sky high above, illuminating a tall and broad form of a fearsome-looking man.

This stranger was interesting looking to say the least. On his spread apart legs and feet were thick, blue and dull copper steel, knee-high boots. On his legs and up to his abs was thick, black material that could withstand most weak attacks, such as slicing with a dagger or rapier. Wrapped snugly around his waist was a dull red, cloth belt with outer thigh protectors of black, silver, and dull copper. On his dark gray-ish, green hands were thin black gloves that exposed his fingers up to the second knuckle, and his arms were covered in even more armor, which pieces overlapped twice and reached his elbows. Covering the rest of his chest was also thick pieces of armor of blue and copper and a bit of gold. On his shoulders were shoulder guards that had a long, black and red cape attached that reached down his full frame. This man had a thick head of bright, fiery red hair that was layered and braided in the back, and hanging down to the base of his neck. A thick red beard and sideburns covered half of his sinister-looking face, which had bright, golden yellow eyes set underneath very thick eyebrows that rose up to his forehead. On the center of his forehead was a gold-plated jewel that had hair fasteners to keep it on. Then what completed the extraordinary look was a broad sword in a thick, black steel sheath attached to his left hip, the hilt black and topped with a spiked, metal end piece that stuck out in front of him. This man was truly an interesting sight to be hold.

As rain continued to pelt the man all over his body and more lightning struck and thunder rumbled, he continued into the town, having stopped to take a quick look for any townspeople nearby. As he walked, his heavy boots pounded the ground, leaving a small tremor in their wake. As he moved closer to the big town square, the man saw something near the center of it. From this distance it was impossible to tell what it was, but he figured it was some kind of monument that represented the town. Gradually he neared closer and closer, his eyes narrowing in suspicion. As lightning lit the sky, illuminating the square, the man finally got a good look at the presumed monument, realizing that it was not even close to such a thing.

In the middle of the square, sitting on the ground with tattered, white spandex pants on their oddly bent legs, their feet sticking partway back, was what appeared to be a young adult male with pale pointed ears and stark white hair that covered one half of his face. The hair hid his face rather well since his head was lowered, and the stranger could clearly see why. Positioned around the boy was a one-side-opened square post made of dark wood, sticking deep within the muddy ground. His thin, pale, and partly bloody and bruised arms were raised and tied with thick chains that connected him to the leg posts, making it impossible for escape on his own. His equally pale chest was bare and covered in blood and littered with horrendous bruises, cuts, and gashes. Around his waist was a simple yellow cloth that had a red and yellow rimmed diamond attached to his hip. Unseen underneath the cloth, the back of the diamond had been directly attached to his flesh and was caked in heavy dried blood. As the man came ever closer, the young man’s closed eyes snapped open, revealing dark grey, nearly black eyes. Gritting pearly white teeth and a tiny growl forming in his throat, the boy carefully lifted his gaze, casting the stranger a glare as he approached.

“Have you come here to hurt and belittle me as well? Or did you just stop by to see the pathetic little demon bastard for a laugh?”

Stopping a few feet away, the broad, tall man stared down at the boy, his face blank. “The townspeople left you out here in the freezing rain, haven’t they?” The young man’s face turned from anger to slight surprise, not expecting that at all. He didn’t answer. Moving down to his right knee, the man placed his left arm on his other upright knee, staring at the demon. “What is your name, boy?”

The young man’s tired eyes widened, but not too far due to exhaustion. No one had ever asked him that before… After a few seconds, the demon jerked his face away, his eyes returning to a glare. The man waited for a response, but when none came, he stood back up and moved to the right, away from the demon’s face. Stopping at the leg post, he reached down towards his hip, grabbed the hilt of the sword, and then gradually pulled it out of its sheath. It made a small “shnn” sound as the edges of the blade scrapped against the inside. Once the blade slipped free, the man held it at his side, eying the chain for a specific place. Seeing something glinting out of the corner of his eye from a lightning strike, the young man chanced a look. When he saw the man lift the blade into the air above him, his eyes widened, believing he would finally be killed, but he wasn't ready for it. At that exact moment, his terrible life began to flash before his eyes.

The man swiftly dropped the blade down at the boy’s arm, smashing the chain to bits. The boy’s teeth came apart a few centimeters in surprise. When the stranger helped lower his arm to his side, he suddenly became panicked.

“What in Goddesses’ names are you doing?!”

Ignoring him, the man moved to the other side by going around behind the boy, and smashed his other arm free from the chains. The demon turned his gaze back again, unable to believe it. Who the hell was this man and why was he freeing him instead of attacking his weakened body, like so many others had done? After lowering his other arm, the man came around to stand in front of him again, looking down at him with the same blank stare.

“My name is Ganondorf, King of the Gerudos,” he announced, his voice deep but calming. The demon blinked at him, still not sure what was going on. “I have released you from your bindings so that you may be free. Now no one will ever be able to torture you again.”

The demon’s eyes widened, wondering how this man that called himself Ganondorf even knew that. Although he had numerous injuries, they could have been caused by a battle that he failed at winning and his punishment was being tied to the post. And yet Ganondorf saw the wounds for what they truly were: excessive force of pain and suffering that was torture and abuse. After a few seconds of shocked silence, the demon closed his mouth and swallowed.

“Who _are_ you…?”

“Hey, what the bloody hell are you doing?!” The young man suddenly flinched harshly at hearing the mean voice. Looking behind Ganondorf, he saw a burly man coming up behind him, looking extremely angry. Moving his narrowing yellow eyes to the side, the Gerudo King saw the man out of his peripheral vision. The demon cowered back, his body shaking uncontrollably. The man stopped behind Ganondorf, glaring at him. “Hey, I’m talking to _you_ , bub!” Out of the corner of his other eye, Ganondorf could see the young man’s frightened reaction, giving him the notion that this man was one of the demon’s abusers. His fingers twitched unnoticeably before he began to turn around to face the man. He pointed an accusing finger at Ganondorf. “Who do you think you are, coming in here and freeing that monster?”

“The only monster I see around here is you.”

Before the man could react, Ganondorf gripped the hilt of his sword and quickly sliced the man’s head clean off his shoulders, throwing the sword out to the side after the chop. The demon’s eyes widened from being stunned at the split second kill. At the last possible millisecond, the man’s eyes had widened and his mouth fell open when he tried to cry out for help. Blood flew into the air from the decapitation and then the man’s body fell to the ground. Ganondorf lowered the blade to hold it at his side, staring at the headless body without remorse. Behind him, the demon couldn’t believe what had just happened, and in such an instantaneous moment.

Lightning split the sky high above the square seconds later, breaking the tension. Lifting his black-bladed sword above and turning it, Ganondorf returned it to its sheath, clicking the hilt into place. Blood spilled heavily from the severed neck and head of the dead man, but the Gerudo King paid no mind. He then turned back around, seeing the demon in shock.

“I spoke the truth when I said no one would hurt you ever again.” The demon slowly moved his head and gaze to Ganondorf, still too stunned to say anything. Snorting quietly out of his nose at the lack of a response, the Gerudo King turned to the side, still staring at him. “You are free to live your life as you please now. These people will never touch you again, I promise you that…”

Turning all the way back around again, Ganondorf took a step towards the dead man, readying to step on his lifeless body for the ultimate humiliation. The young man stared after him in silence for a few more steps before he weakly gritted his teeth, as if finally ready to speak.

“W-Wait!” Stopping and looking back over his shoulder, Ganondorf saw the demon try to stand up on his thin legs. They shook terribly and were unable to hold up his weight, so he fell slightly forward, quickly placing his arms forward to stop himself from fully collapsing. The demon was so weak, he was amazed he could even move at all. Already out of breath, he looked up at Ganondorf, panting. Rain water dripped from the ends of his soaking wet hair and down his face. “P-Please…take me, w-with you! If you d-don’t, these people, they’ll-!”

The demon’s next breath caught in his throat and he couldn’t stay up any longer. He finally collapsed to the muddy ground, breathing heavy and hard from exhaustion. Ganondorf stared at him without a word, waiting. The young man laid there for a long time, feeling afraid to try getting up again. Staring at the wet and muddy ground, tears formed in his eyes and threatened to spill out. A sob soon escaped him.

“Please, h-help me… I ca…c-can’t get up…” Closing his dark eyes tight, the demon squeezed heavy tears out, sobbing even more. “Th-These p-people…a-are the m-monsters, n-not me…” The demon paused as he dropped his forehead into the mud. “Please, h-help me, get a-away from here! I am f-forever in your d-debt if you d-do…!”

Ganondorf stared at the poor crying boy in silence for a long time, just letting him get it out of his system. When they were both quiet, the Gerudo King turned around and walked back to the demon. Hearing the vibrations of his footsteps coming near, the young man’s heart and breathing stopped for just a moment, feeling extremely hopeful. Stopping by his head, Ganondorf stared down at him for a few more seconds before getting to his knees and lifting his hand. The demon flinched involuntarily when he felt the extra weight upon his head, believing he was going to be hit out of reflex. When no pain came, he dragged his forehead into the mud as he moved his head up in order to look at Ganondorf. When he saw the Gerudo King’s kind, caring facial expression as he stared at him, the demon’s brow furrowed and his face scrunched up as he started to cry again. Closing his eyes seconds later, he sobbed.

“P-Please don’t leave me h-here…”

Rain continued to fall heavily from the sky as the two acquaintances stayed in the same position for several seconds. Once all was quiet except for the thunder and lightning in the sky, Ganondorf stood up, walked to the side of the demon, and then crouched down next to him. He reached over with both gauntlet hands for him, helping him roll over onto his scarred and bruised back, before pushing his arms underneath his upper back and knees. The demon gritted his teeth as he growled in pain from being moved, his wounds searing. Ganondorf had no trouble picking the demon up due to his small size. He pulled him to his chest, holding firmly onto him, turned around, and then headed out of the Goddess-forsaken town without looking back. Down in his arms, the demon opened his eyes partway, glancing at the terrible wounds on his chest, stomach, legs, and arms. More tears fell from his eyes as he remembered how he had received them. The humiliation and pain he felt when those people ridiculed him, threw things at him, and attacked him relentlessly without giving him a way to protect himself was more than he could stand anymore. But now he was free from their torments and their hateful words born from fear and hate of unnatural things, all thanks to this Gerudo King. The demon was forever grateful to him…

“Ghirahim.”

Hearing the soft, weak voice over the thunder, Ganondorf looked down at the demon in his arms. “Hm?”

The demon blinked up at him, his tears finally gone. “My name. It is Ghirahim…”


	2. Chapter 2

The thunderstorm had let up somewhat, but the clouds were still dark, it continued to rain, the thunder had become a low rumble in the distance, and lightning was less frequent now. It had been at least three hours since Ganondorf had arrived at the lonely town and found a new companion that was in need of rescuing. The Gerudo King wasn’t one to show mercy very often, but as soon as he found this demon named Ghirahim, he had felt something unknown begin to grow within his very soul. There was something very special about Ghirahim that Ganondorf wanted to discover, no matter how long it took. After another hour and half later, the rain finally let up. The two travelers wouldn’t get dry very quickly unless they made a fire, but Ganondorf wanted to get as far away from the village and this area as quickly as possible. They needed to find adequate shelter as well.

Still snug in Ganondorf’s arms, Ghirahim had his eyes closed and his body was relaxed. His head was propped against Ganondorf’s upper arm while the side of his body was resting right up against his chest. Ghirahim’s arms were resting comfortably on his sides, his hands resting on his outer thighs. When he no longer felt the cold rain on his pale skin, his eyes slowly opened a few centimeters and he was staring up at the dark sky. He heard the thunder rumble lowly in the distance and caught a glimpse of some lightning out of his peripherals. Inhaling deeply, Ghirahim re-closed his eyes and then turned his face towards Ganondorf’s armored chest. As he breathed through his nose, he inhaled the Gerudo’s strange scent, not sure what to make of it.

“…As soon as I find adequate shelter, we will stop for the night,” Ganondorf said a little while later. Ghirahim opened his eyes a bit, seeing the armor before him. “The storm should disappear soon and then we can work on getting ourselves dry.”

Ghirahim exhaled out of his nose. “Okay…”

Ganondorf repositioned Ghirahim in his arms as they continued on their way. Then what seemed like many more hours later, a cave appeared in the close distance. Ganondorf increased his stride in order to get there faster. They soon entered, Ganondorf checking to make sure nothing already occupied it. When he discovered it was safe, he had to duck his head to enter and then moved as far back from the cold without losing too much light. Finding a cluster of stalactites along the wall, Ganondorf walked to them, crouched down on one knee, and then lowered Ghirahim down to the rock ground. He helped prop the demon up against the stalactites and then straightened out his legs. Ghirahim looked at him out of the side of his nearly closed eye.

“Thank you…”

It was strange saying that, Ghirahim realized after he had said it. He simply could not remember the last time anyone did something nice for him.

“It was the least I could do,” Ganondorf said before standing. Turning, he walked to the other side of the cave and began to remove the armor from his shoulders and arms. Ghirahim stared at him as he stripped down to his regular clothing, blinking every so often. His eyes narrowed in suspicion when he saw Ganondorf also remove his top, which was made out of the same thick material as his pants. Turning back around, he approached Ghirahim, still holding the top. He stopped in front of him then, crouching down again. “This should help keep you warm.”

Ghirahim blinked at him, still having trouble processing this kind of kindness that no one had ever shown him before. Ganondorf lowered the long-sleeved shirt over Ghirahim’s head and then helped slip his arms through the sleeves. It was far too big on his small frame, but he was almost instantly warm despite being wet. Ganondorf rolled up the sleeves to get his hands free.

“Why are you helping me?”

Ganondorf lifted his head to look at Ghirahim. “Why else? Because you needed it.”

“What makes you think I deserved to be helped?” Ghirahim asked. “The people of that town believed me to be a burden and worthless, so why shouldn’t you too?”

Ganondorf’s face was blank as he said, “I am nothing like them.”

Ghirahim snorted. “Everyone is the same. They hate and hurt those they despise or deem too different for their standards. I did nothing to them but be born and live a life I did not choose.” Ghirahim looked away, sadness filling him at what he was saying. “They always told me that no one would ever love me because of what I am, and they were right.” Closing his eyes, he added, “I am nothing, a nobody. And sooner or later, you will see me in the same light, just like everybody else…”

Ganondorf’s eyes narrowed slightly after Ghirahim trailed off. He saw another tear fall from the corner of his eye and down his cheek. It seemed pointless to try making the demon see that he was wrong. So, for now, Ganondorf decided to drop the subject. Standing up, he turned to the entrance of the cave and walked away, leaving Ghirahim to wallow alone in his misery.

* * *

Later that night, Ganondorf returned from the nearest woods, carrying two dead Pols Voices in one large hand. Pols Voice monsters looked like bunny rabbits with their long ears and fluffy white bodies. Entering the cave, he moved to the open space a few feet from Ghirahim and set them down where he would be making a fire. He left again for some logs, twigs, branches, and tinder such as moss. As soon as he returned, he set up the logs in a five-point star shape and began making the fire itself.

It didn’t take long to have a hot, roaring fire that illuminated almost the entire cave. Grabbing the Pols Voices, Ganondorf skinned them and then laid them on the open flames. Over at his spot, Ghirahim watched him work, blinking every so often. He still didn’t trust what Ganondorf had said about caring about him when no one else did, so he stayed both wary and alert, just in case he turned on him. After a while, the smell of cooking meat reached his nose and he quickly realized how famished he was. He had been able to eat food back in that town, usually the rotted foods that the townspeople would throw at him, but it hadn’t been enough to quench his hunger. Now that he smelled such good smelling food, his mouth watered and he felt like he would jump in like a starved animal and devour those Pols Voices. It took a lot of will power for him to stay put and not become completely ravenous the longer he had to wait. Behind pressed lips, fangs began to grow in his mouth and he gritted them tightly together. An unsolicited growl then formed in his throat. Hearing it, Ganondorf looked at him.

“Ghirahim, that’s enough.” Ghirahim dug his fingers into the rock, causing them to bleed since his nails were almost non-existent, trying his damned hardest not to explode and jump on that fire. Noticing him struggling to maintain his primal urges that terrible hunger brought forth, Ganondorf stood up and stepped up to him. Ghirahim growled at him, baring his fangs a bit, but the Gerudo King was unfazed. Crouching down in front of him, he placed his hands on his upper arms, gripping them tightly. “Ghirahim, you _have_ to calm down. You can control that side of you, I know you can.” Ghirahim dug his fingertips into the ground even harder, unable to grow claws like most demons. His entire body tightened and he curled in a bit, his growl getting louder and more menacing. Ganondorf stared sternly at him. “Fight it, Ghirahim! Or I will leave you here alone to _die_!”

That got Ghirahim’s attention fast. His growl stopped short and his eyes softened. Slowly, his fangs began to recede back to normal and his body began to weaken. It appeared he was now back to normal. Slowly his shoulders began to droop and his body relaxed. As soon as it did, pain ruptured through his entire body. Suddenly falling forward, Ghirahim gasped out some air from his mouth and started panting. Ganondorf carefully lowered him to the ground, relinquishing some of his hold on his arms. He then laid him out on his back, Ghirahim’s head landing by his feet. Sitting down, Ganondorf pulled the demon’s upper body onto his lap and rested the back of his head on his stomach.

“That’s a good boy…”

After a few seconds, Ghirahim finally collapsed entirely and the pain diminished, but was still a dull ache, especially around his more gruesome injuries. Ganondorf ran his hand through his white hair to help calm him down. Releasing a deep breath, Ghirahim became like a rag doll as he slumped into the Gerudo. He then closed his eyes, inhaling deeply and holding it for a few seconds before letting it go.

“…I’m sorry.”

Ganondorf continued to pet his head. “It’s alright…” They were silent for a while. Behind them, the meat continued to cook, nearly ready to be burnt, but they ignored it. “…I apologize for threatening to leave you here. It seemed like the only thing that would work on you while you were in such a state.” Ghirahim’s eyes opened a little. Out of his peripherals, he saw his bloody fingers as he had his relaxed hands resting on the ground with the palms facing up. “…After we eat, I will take care of your injuries.”

Ghirahim breathed heavy and frequently through his nose as he stared off into space. He soon closed his eyes again and his head gently fell to the left side. This caused Ganondorf’s hand to press against his cheek in a comforting way. Minutes later and tears fell from Ghirahim’s eyes. His brow furrowed as he tried to keep his emotions in check, but that only caused his nose to burn and his throat to tighten. Parting his lips from his clenched teeth, he sobbed and cried, overwhelmed by Ganondorf’s kindness.

“I-I’m sorry, I’m so sorry…!”

Ganondorf didn’t have to ask what Ghirahim was sorry about. He knew it was going to be hard for him to accept the fact that at least someone cared about him when no one else would or had. It would take a lot of time and patience for Ghirahim to fully trust the Gerudo King, but he was going to pull him through it, no matter the cost.

“Whatever those humans told you, they are all lies,” Ganondorf told Ghirahim with a soft, quiet voice. “You deserve to live and I am going to show you just how precious you are in this dark world. You have my solemn promise.”

Ghirahim continued to sob and cry, needing to just let it all out. It took a long time for him to calm down again. His body had collapsed in on itself as it lay in Ganondorf’s lap. Finally a little while later, Ghirahim was nearly sound asleep due to exhaustion. As gently as possible, Ganondorf laid him down on the ground, pushed his matted hair off his forehead in reassurance, and then stood up to tend to the Pols Voices.

Taking them off the flames, Ganondorf quickly set them in his arm guard armor to avoid burning himself, turned around, and then came up beside Ghirahim. He sat down, setting the armor down between them. Smelling the nearly burnt meat close-by, Ghirahim turned his head to see the armor piece. Vapors rose from the hot meat and filled the cave. He swallowed hard to avoid taking both Pols Voices and eating them in one bite, he was so hungry. His mouth began to fill with saliva again, but he swallowed it down. Ganondorf waited at least three minutes before turning the open side of the armor in Ghirahim’s direction.

“Eat as much as you need. I can wait.”

Gulping and then running a long, snake-like tongue over his lips, Ghirahim slowly reached for a Pols Voice and touched the lumpy body with his full hand. His scratched and cut up fingers burned painfully from the intense heat, but hunger outweighed the pain ten-to-one. Grabbing it with both hands and looking upwards, Ghirahim moved the meat close, opened his mouth as far as he could, and then chomped his teeth into it.

“HAmph…”

As soon as the intense flavor touched his tongue, Ghirahim’s eyes widened in amazement. Not bothering to eat like a normal person, he ravaged the meat as fast as he could, not caring if he ate bones in the process. He was so hungry that nothing mattered but this glorious hunk of meat that would help bring his strength back up. Across from him, Ganondorf stared at Ghirahim, blinking behind a blank face. A few seconds later, however, a small, amused smirk formed and he snorted softly from his nose.

For the next few minutes Ghirahim ate to his heart and stomach’s content, unable to help himself. He even had his eyes closed in tasteful bliss. When there was next to no meat left on this Pols Voice, Ghirahim tossed it to the side and grabbed the second one. He began to devour it the same way as before, but halfway through it he stopped, thinking. Carefully, he took the meat out of his mouth, rolled over the best he could, and then shakily moved the Pols Voice back onto the armor. Ganondorf watched in curiosity as he tried to push the armor towards him. Feeling exhausted suddenly, Ghirahim dropped his arm and head to the ground, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath.

“You need to eat too…” he spoke softly.

Ganondorf gave him a small smile. “That is very thoughtful of you, Ghirahim, but your needs are far greater than mine.”

Ghirahim opened his eyes partly. “Mh…I guess so…”

Ghirahim didn’t try to take the Pols Voice back. With his stomach finally full of wonderful tasting meat, he closed his eyes again and quickly drifted off to sleep. The cave went silent except for the crackling fire and Ghirahim was so fast asleep that not even an earthquake would wake him. That was definitely a good thing, Ganondorf thought as he continued to stare at the demon.

“Sleep well, my precious Ghirahim…”

After making a hundred percent sure that Ghirahim would stay in a deep sleep, he stood up, picked him up gently, and then moved him closer to the hot fire. Ganondorf then turned around and left, needing to explore the area more. By the time he returned a few hours later, Ghirahim had curled up into the fetal position by the fire, sound asleep. In his sleep, he had unraveled the sleeves of Ganondorf’s top and had them wrapped tightly around him. Going to his cape, the Gerudo King detached it from his shoulder guards, returned to Ghirahim, and wrapped it snugly around his legs and feet. The demon slept soundly and, most importantly, peacefully, all through the night.

* * *

As he began to come out of his deep sleep the next day, well into the afternoon, Ghirahim was vaguely aware of someone walking around the cave without a word. Eyes slowly opening, he lifted his gaze a few inches and saw heavily booted feet pacing the cave behind a dying fire. For a few seconds he didn’t know where he was or who was with him, so he felt panic start to form in his chest, but then he heard a new, but familiar voice as the feet stopped, the toes facing him.

“You are finally awake. Good. I was starting to worry…” Walking up beside Ghirahim, the Gerudo King Ganondorf crouched before him to let him see his face. He then reached over for his head, carefully petting him. “How are you feeling? Did you sleep well?” Exhaling out of his nose, Ghirahim lowered his gaze and tried to sit up. As his body seized up in some pain, Ganondorf moved closer and helped him up. “Be careful not to overexert yourself, my boy.”

After taking a few deep breaths, Ghirahim grabbed the bridge of his nose with his right hand, squeezing it. After rubbing his eyes to get the tired out of them, he looked at Ganondorf. “How long was I asleep?”

“For nearly twelve hours.” Ghirahim looked away, humming quietly to himself in thought. “If you will permit me, I must inspect your injuries. Although I am no healer, I can make some temporary dressings until we reach a doctor.”

Ghirahim glanced at Ganondorf out of the corner of his eye. “If you insist.”

“You will have to remove your clothes first.”

“Oh.”

Ganondorf’s eyes narrowed in confusion. “Is that going to be an issue?”

There was a pause before Ghirahim looked down at the big diamond on his hip. “I do not wish to bleed out…”

For a moment Ganondorf didn’t know why he said that, but once he saw where he was looking, realization hit. His eyes quickly narrowed in anger. “You should have told me about that before.”

Ghirahim looked up at him properly, looking confused. “Why?”

“So that I could have destroyed every single one of those villagers with my bare hands,” Ganondorf answered.

Ghirahim’s eyes widened in surprise. “You really would have done that for me?”

“Yes.” Ghirahim kept getting more and more surprised by this King every day. Sighing, Ganondorf stood up and moved in front of him. “Since I cannot remove the pin in fear of killing you from blood loss, I will keep the sash in place but remove your pants. Will you allow it?”

Ghirahim blinked at him a few times, feeling uncomfortable but knowing that he also needed his legs examined, so he nodded. “Yes sir.”

Ganondorf jerked his head forward once in a nod. “Good.” Crouching in front of him, the Gerudo King pulled a dagger from a pouch attached to the back of his waist and carefully began to cut away the white fabric, starting on the left leg. “But don’t call me sir.” Ghirahim watched him work in silence, trying to remain as still as possible to avoid being sliced or stabbed. It took nearly five minutes to cut right up to the yellow sash around Ghirahim’s waist, having to be extra careful when he reached that point. But, in the end, he was able to remove the pants just fine without disturbing the diamond much. “I need you to lay on your back so I can try seeing how much damage is underneath the sash.”

Carefully moving his hands behind him, Ghirahim slowly lowered his body back down, keeping his legs outstretched. He closed his eyes in fear of what Ganondorf might find and accidentally causing pain. His body flinched when he felt thick fingers touch his skin and then lift the sash away. The Gerudo King’s eyes narrowed, the anger returning. It was suddenly very quiet, so Ghirahim opened his eyes partway, seeing the look on the Gerudo’s face.

“Is it that bad?”

Sighing, Ganondorf lowered the sash back down and then helped him sit up again. “Do not worry about that until we reach a doctor later.” Grabbing the hem of his thick top, Ganondorf began to lift it off Ghirahim’s small frame to take it off. Once it was past his chest, he pulled it off from the back and then slipped the sleeves off Ghirahim’s arms. Now that he was almost fully exposed, the injuries looked even worse than before. Ganondorf tried very hard to keep his anger in check as he began to examine them closely. After a good ten minutes, he had a proper assessment. “Many of these cuts have clotted and just have dried blood around them. Stretching the skin could re-open them, so you will have to be as immobile as possible for a while.” Reaching over to the left side of Ghirahim’s face, Ganondorf lifted his long bangs off his face since that was one of the few places he couldn’t see. His eyes narrowed when he saw what appeared to be a black diamond birthmark under his eye. “That is an interesting mark.”

Ghirahim gently pushed his hand away, letting his hair fall back into place. “It is one of the traits that the townspeople used to identify that I am, in fact, a demon.” Lifting his arm carefully to avoid stretching his wounds, Ghirahim grabbed the tip of his pointed ear and gently tugged on it. “My ears were identifiers as well.”

“I see…”

Ghirahim lowered his arm. “They also knew what I was after I killed my mother in child birth.” An unsettling air appeared around them after he said this. Looking away, his eyes narrowing in anger and despair, Ghirahim added, “She could never love _me_ , either…” Looking down at his legs, he lifted his right hand to his exposed face and pressed it to his cheek and over his eye, digging his fingers against his forehead. Closing his eyes tight, Ghirahim began to cry in anguish, his body shaking as he breathed unsteadily. “I am a _monster_ …”

As he cried quietly, Ganondorf stared at him with a blank stare, his eyes narrowed. The more Ghirahim revealed truths about himself, the more the Gerudo King felt bad for him. But he had to disagree with one very important thing. Reaching forward, Ganondorf grabbed Ghirahim’s hand firmly but caringly and helped lower it. The demon looked up, his eyes and face very wet. His lips were parted and his teeth were pressed together. Ganondorf continued to stare directly at him for a few seconds before placing his other hand on the left side of his face.

“What happened to your mother was no fault of your own.” Ganondorf used his thumb to wipe the tears away. “And you are no monster…” Ghirahim’s eyes widened at hearing this, his mouth hanging partly open. More tears formed and then fell down his cheeks within seconds. But, somehow, he actually believed Ganondorf this time. Lowering his head and closing his eyes again, he sniffed in hard, for some reason feeling a sense of relief in having the Gerudo there. Once he had calmed down, Ganondorf lowered his hands, grabbed the discarded pants, and then stood up. “Cover yourself with my cape while I make your dressings.”

Nodding frantically, Ghirahim wiped his face and grabbed the cape, wrapping it around his shoulders and laying the ends over his thighs and genitals. The cape was even bigger than the thick, black shirt Ganondorf had given to him. It even had the Gerudo King’s scent on it. Ghirahim suddenly shook his head, his hair and ears flopping around.

‘ _Why do I keep thinking about that?’_

Ghirahim couldn’t help but think about this strange but reassuring scent and how it made him feel. After a few minutes, Ganondorf had made thick enough strips from the leggings to use as dressings for Ghirahim’s much worse wounds. He returned to the demon’s side, removed the cape from around him, and then began to wrap the dressing around his legs and arms. For the next few minutes Ganondorf wrapped them on the wounds and wiped off any dirt or grime from his skin. He decided to leave the dried blood on to be used as a kind of glue to prevent more bleeding. When he was all done, he sat back, looking over Ghirahim’s body one more time.

“That should do until we reach a doctor. But for now, you can put my shirt back on and use my cape as pants. Then, if you are ready to leave, I will carry you.”

“Okay. And I am.”

“I will help you stand up then.”

For the next few minutes Ganondorf helped Ghirahim to his weakened legs and feet and helped dress him in his clothing. He wrapped the cape around him like a skirt, being extra careful not to press the diamond against Ghirahim’s flesh. Once he was situated, Ganondorf picked him up in his arms bridal style and then they continued on their way to Ganondorf’s kingdom.


	3. Chapter 3

Traveling the mostly deserted plain was much easier now, now that it was sunny and warm, hardly a cloud in sight. Ghirahim and Ganondorf still had a long way to go from here, but at least it would be better now. Or hopefully, in Ghirahim’s case. There was no telling how severe his injuries really were. He needed a doctor as quickly as possible, but it would probably take days to get to one. Ganondorf wished he had a stallion to make the trip go faster.

For most of the day both travelers were silent and Ghirahim rested as much as he could. Around nightfall, he was starving again since he hadn’t had breakfast or even a snack all day. They soon stopped when darkness began to set in quickly. Ganondorf set Ghirahim on the ground, keeping him sitting up rather than lying down.

“I will find fire material and dinner for us. Just stay here.”

Ghirahim scratched at the back of his pointed ear. “Okay.”

With a nod, Ganondorf left him alone in the darkness to find logs, moss, and sticks for the fire pit. So that he didn’t have to hunt as much, he tried to find a Wolfos in order to have leftovers for the next two days. Meanwhile, back at camp, Ghirahim was trying to adjust Ganondorf’s shirt so that it didn’t swallow him. He hiked up the long sleeves and tied what he could at his wrists, leaving his bruised and dried, bloody fingers exposed. Then he folded the hem of the shirt up around his waist. When he felt the diamond against his forearm, he looked down at it, wondering if he could stomach looking at the damage it had caused. Swallowing hard, Ghirahim lifted the hem a little higher, grabbed the top edge of the sash, and carefully pulled it away. What he saw made him violently ill.

On the back of the diamond, a thick, four inch spike had been welded onto it and was currently all the way inside of Ghirahim’s body. There was a lot of dried, globy blood around it and there was a terrible infection. It was a miracle that he hadn’t died from the infection alone. Then again, being a demon had its advantages. It didn’t stop the gruesome wound from hurting so badly however. Suddenly turning away as quickly as he could without moving the diamond jerkily, Ghirahim placed his hands on the ground and vomited most of what he had digested last night. Once he was done, he coughed violently and then spit out anything that was left. Opening his eyes, heavy tears from losing oxygen and seeing the damage streamed down his face, along with some clear snot from his nose. He started having trouble breathing, so he opened his mouth wide and panted heavily while swallowing constantly.

It took a lot of willpower to not remove the diamond and throw it away so that Ghirahim didn’t have to think about it or see it ever again. It was a burden, but also a gift, because without it, he would bleed to death and he wanted to live. Ganondorf had given him that reason to, so he couldn’t die here.

Speaking of, once he was back to breathing normally, Ghirahim looked back to where Ganondorf had gone, hoping he would be back soon. He didn’t want to be alone anymore. Sniffing a while later, he placed his hands on the ground on either side of him and then carefully moved sideways away from the vomit. To prevent from losing breath again or hyperventilating, he took deep, calming breaths as he moved. Once he was situated again, he wiped his face off with his sleeves. With his fingers, he blew his nose and then rubbed them off on the ground to remove the snot. Ghirahim hissed in pain as his bruised fingers scraped the packed dirt. He needed to stop forgetting about them.

Ghirahim glanced back again, feeling fidgety as he still continued to wait. Those intrusive thoughts that no one would care about him were slowly returning and he was feeling lonely again. Was Ganondorf truly coming back for him, or had that all been a lie?

_No one will ever love a monster like you! You deserve to be alone and hated, filthy demon!_

Ghirahim quickly slammed his hands over his ears, trying to drown out the voices of the townspeople from years past. Like Ganondorf said, they had told him nothing but lies and he had a reason to live. Hadn’t the Gerudo King already shown him that anyway? And yet…

‘ _No, they were right…’_

Ghirahim’s eyes snapped open and tears streamed down his face, having given in to those words again. He had to get out of there and survive alone, just as the townspeople had done for him. Leaning forward and placing his hands down, Ghirahim tried to stand. His body tightened as he pushed his way up and pain drove through him. He gritted his teeth as he growled with the effort. Once on his feet, he nearly lost his balance, but he put one foot forward to steady himself. He took a deep breath to find his center and then tried to take a step. The best he could do was slide his bare foot forward. Luckily he didn’t lose his balance or fall, so he decided to just drag his feet if he had to. He hardly took five steps when a voice spoke to him.

“Ghirahim, you cannot leave. If you do, you will surely die.”

Ghirahim growled at Ganondorf’s words. “Th-Then so be it! I will never believe your lies! Th-Those humans w-were right…!”

Setting the fire pit supplies and a dead Wolfos from his shoulder down on the ground, Ganondorf strode after him. Grabbing his left shoulder, he forced Ghirahim around to face him, grabbing both arms. Ghirahim growled at him in anger and despair.

“I know you cannot believe me or trust in anything I ever say, Ghirahim, but I am not letting you go. I _will_ convince you that you deserve to live and have a home with people who care about you. Now come back over here and sit down, before you injure yourself more. Do you understand me?” Ghirahim didn't answer, nor did he try to get away. Taking that as his answer, Ganondorf turned him sideways and quickly picked him up bridal style so that he couldn’t attempt running away. Ghirahim wouldn’t look at the Gerudo as he carried him back to camp. After setting him down in a different spot, Ganondorf set up the fire pit, made the fire, and then took the Wolfos far away to skin it and cut the meat from its bones, all the while keeping an eye on Ghirahim to make sure he didn’t try to escape again. He then returned to the fire, setting the chunks of meat over the flames. “This meat should last us two days worth of travel if we eat it sparingly.”

Ghirahim blinked a few times at him. “I would rather starve.”

Ganondorf glared weakly back. “Stop talking like that, or I will shove it down your throat to make you eat.”

“Well fine then maybe I can choke on it!” Picking up a rock that was close-by, Ganondorf quickly threw it at Ghirahim, clocking him in the head. He instantly put a hand to the pained area. “OW!”

“Do not make me break your legs on top of everything else, you ungrateful little bastard,” Ganondorf snarled. Ghirahim glared his one eye at him, tears forming again. Ganondorf’s angry face softened. “Don’t cry, Ghirahim.”

The demon quickly wiped the tears away. “I can’t help it. Everything hurts…”

Ganondorf sighed. “I know….”

Ghirahim sniffed in hard before saying, “No you don’t. No one would dare mess with you.”

“That might be true, but my people have been persecuted time and time again, so I know by learning our history how much it hurts. Believe me, I have seen it happen.”

This time, Ghirahim did. “That I can believe in.”

There was a pause before Ganondorf exhaled out of his nose. “I wish you could believe in everything else.”

Ghirahim looked away. “I have been told all my life that no one would love me or care about someone like me, so excuse me if I believe them far more than I believe you…”

Ganondorf nodded gently. “Which is why I am trying to be patient with you and show you that I speak the truth. You must also make it an effort.”

“Then I’m sorry if I have trouble making an effort.”

“I understand.” Ghirahim blinked at him in bewilderment. Ganondorf continued to surprise him with each situation they went through. For the next hour and a half, Ganondorf tended to the Wolfos meat by turning it over and over in the flames every ten or fifteen minutes. Ghirahim would simply just stare at the fire while feeling exhausted. He tried not to inhale the scent of almost fully cooked meat in fear of losing control of his sanity like last night. When half of the meat was cooked, Ganondorf glanced up at him, blinking. “Did you decide on the name Ghirahim or was it given to you?”

Ghirahim thought that was a random question to be asking, but he figured Ganondorf was just trying to get to know him better, so the demon decided to humor him. “I don’t know. Rarely did anyone say my name when they spoke of or to me. But I would assume my mother named me Ghirahim.”

“Do you know what it means?”

Ghirahim shook his head. “Not at all.” There was a pause. “What about you? Who named you?”

“My grandmother told my mother that I must be named Ganondorf,” the Gerudo answered. “You see, the Gerudos are all female, except for one male in a random generation. As a child I was told of our ancestry and how the cycle always continues the same way as before.”

Ghirahim seemed confused by this. “What do you mean?”

Ganondorf rotated the meat again before answering. “Have you heard of the Hylian race?”

“No.”

“Well, the Gerudos and the Hylians have been at war with one another since the beginning of our world. Our fates always end the same way each time. The Gerudos die off, almost to extinction, and the Hylians prosper. So to speak, I am a reincarnation of the previous Gerudo King and a chosen Hylian of the Royal Family is a reincarnation of the previous Royal Family. Even now, the Gerudos and the Hylians are bitter enemies, whether we go to war or not. In this case, I have no such plans to overthrow them, simply because I do not wish to die. We have a peace treaty in place that the Gerudos and the Royal family agreed upon, so the only way a war would happen is if either of us breaks that treaty. Therefore, I have tried hard to rule my kingdom out of their way, while the Royal Family rules theirs out of my way. Sometimes we must battle, but a full war has not broken out, and I plan to keep it that way, at all costs.”

Ghirahim blinked at him, trying to remember all that he said. To avoid the same fate as his predecessors, Ganondorf would rather form a peace treaty with the Hylians than risk death. Perhaps if there was no war between them, then the cycle would be broken. That was what Ghirahim thought would happen anyway.

“You have to stay alive somehow, right?”

“That’s right.” It got quiet then, at least for another half an hour. Picking up one of the chunks of meat, Ganondorf tested the heat distribution by prodding and pinching at it in places. Taking a dagger from his waist, he cut it down the middle to check that the meat wasn’t bloody on the inside. It was a little pink, but that was fine. It would do Ghirahim some good to have a bit more protein and nutrients for his diet. Cutting the rest of the chunk in half, Ganondorf held one half to Ghirahim, who simply stared blankly it. “…I meant what I said about shoving food down your throat to eat, Ghirahim. So save us both the trouble and eat at least some of this.” Glancing at him briefly, Ghirahim sighed quietly and held both hands out to him. Nodding in approval, Ganondorf set the meat in his hands and handed him the dagger. “You can use that to cut it into pieces.”

Ghirahim didn’t take it. “No, I’m fine.” To prove it to him, the demon turned the meat around to have a thin end facing his face and then led it to his mouth. He grabbed the meat with his teeth and chewed and ground into it, managing to pull a good sized piece off with not much effort. Pulling the whole piece into his mouth, he chewed hungrily on it and then swallowed it in a still fairly big piece. “There, happy?”

“Yes, actually,” Ganondorf said with a small smile. “If you only wish to eat that much, then that will do.”

Ghirahim looked down at the tasty meat, licking his lips and mouth with his long tongue. “Okay…” For the next few minutes the two companions ate their dinner without a word. While Ghirahim simply tore chunks off, Ganondorf was cutting his chunk into bite-sized pieces. Being so much smaller, Ghirahim was full now and was ready for bed. But first, he really had to use the bathroom. He looked up at Ganondorf, who was almost done eating his second chunk of meat. “I don’t know about you, but I must relieve myself before I go to sleep. And I highly doubt it will be pretty.”

Ganondorf nodded. “I will help you find a place to go. Just promise me something.”

Ghirahim eyed him suspiciously. “Okay…”

“Promise me you won’t try to run away.” There was an unsettling pause as Ghirahim just blinked at Ganondorf. “I promise you on the souls of my dead ancestors that I will not abandon you, Ghirahim. I always keep my promises to those I deem worthy.”

Ghirahim was silent for a long time. It was a pretty gutsy move, to use your dead ancestors to prove to someone that they mean what they say. After contemplating on this for a while, Ghirahim finally lowered his head and sighed.

“I promise not to run away.”

“Thank you.”

Taking the other meat off the fire and wrapping them up in some cloth, Ganondorf helped Ghirahim to his feet and then they walked away into the woods to find a large covered area of bushes and trees for the demon to do his business. Once they found a place, Ganondorf left him on his own, but stayed close enough to help him or stop him from leaving if he broke his promise. But the Gerudo King believed that Ghirahim wouldn’t do that, so he wasn’t worried. It was more of a precaution than anything else.

“…Ganondorf?”

The Gerudo King glanced behind him. “Yes, Ghirahim?”

In the bushes, crouching down, Ghirahim was squatting while resting back against a tree for balance. The cape that acted as a skirt was hanging from a branch to avoid a mess. “I don’t think my urine should be this color.”

“And what color would that be?”

“Some faint red color.”

Ganondorf hummed in thought. “It might just be blood from an infection. We’ll know better after we’ve reached a doctor the full details of your condition.”

“Should I be worried until then?” Ghirahim asked, feeling panicky all of a sudden at the news.

Ganondorf turned around to face where he left Ghirahim from. “Try not to think about it for now. But be sure to let me know if you experience pain during urination or if it becomes darker red.”

Looking at the ground, Ghirahim sighed, placing his face in his hands. “Yeah, okay…”

Ghirahim knew he would do the total opposite of what Ganondorf said and worry from here until they reached a doctor, but he was going to pretend he wasn’t. He didn’t need Ganondorf being too concerned for him than he already had. Ten minutes later and Ghirahim was done. Looking at the cape, he wondered if he should risk getting it dirty or use grass or a leaf instead. Or maybe even a rock would work. Ghirahim looked around himself for a good sized one, but there weren’t any. Sighing, he took the cape down and ripped a piece off from one of the ends, folded it up, and then wiped his ass to clean it. Then he threw it on the ground before wrapping the rest of the cape around his waist again.

“I’m ready to go back, Ganondorf,” Ghirahim called as he stepped out of the bush and slid his feet to walk towards another tree.

Ganondorf returned in less than a minute. “How are you feeling?”

“Tired and sore.”

Nodding, Ganondorf picked Ghirahim back up and then returned them to camp. He set the demon down close to the fire before standing back. “I passed a log a few minutes away, so I will bring it here for you to prop yourself up tonight.”

“I will be fine curled up on the ground.”

“If you insist,” Ganondorf said before sitting down close-by. Laying on his left side and curling up into the fetal position, Ghirahim closed his eyes and tried to fall asleep. Ganondorf watched him for a couple of hours before attempting to go to sleep as well. “Good night, Ghirahim.”

Standing and moving to the closest tree, Ganondorf sat down, leaned back, and closed his eyes, only falling half asleep to make sure Ghirahim didn’t walk away. The whole night felt like two days worth of time, but then it was morning and the sun was rising higher into the sky. Waking up from hearing birds flying above, Ganondorf sat up, rubbed his tired eyes, and then looked towards the dead fire fifteen feet away. His eyes widened when he didn’t see Ghirahim lying by the pit. He suddenly jumped to his feet, causing a small tremor to travel on the ground.

“Ghirahim?!”

“Yes?”

Actually jumping in surprise, Ganondorf looked to his left and saw Ghirahim emerge from the woods. He dragged his fingers through his tangled and messy hair, trying to straighten it back out. Releasing a deep breath, Ganondorf approached him.

“You should have woken me up before wandering off. I thought you had left me behind.”

Ghirahim stopped, shaking his head. “No. I, too, keep my promises. I just really had to pee again.”

Ganondorf was relieved. “I am glad that you have decided to stay.” There was a pause. “So, shall we continue?”

Ghirahim scratched his ear. “I suppose…”

Ganondorf picked up the packaged meat, placed them within his armor to carry, picked Ghirahim up, ruined the fire pit, and then they were ready to travel their long road that was still ahead of them again.

* * *

The following two days went by in most of the same way. Ganondorf would wake Ghirahim up for breakfast at either nine or ten in the morning, carry him as they traveled across the plain and now a forest, stop by sundown to get a fire started, warm up the leftover meat for dinner, eat, and then sleep. It was a great strategy even if it was boring from time to time. Ghirahim slept a lot since he had little to no strength from his wounds and infections left and his body was experiencing more pain because of those infections. It would take a miracle for them to reach a doctor before the infections possibly reached his heart, lungs, and brain, which would ultimately take his life, but they were both determined to make it in time.

By late afternoon the third day, they were very close now to a small town that was in a valley that had a pond on the west side. Ganondorf stopped on the hill that overlooked the town for a few seconds before they trekked their way down.

“How are you doing right now, Ghirahim?” he asked. Ghirahim had his eyes closed and he was snoring softly as he snoozed. Ganondorf looked down at him. “Ghirahim, we’re almost to a town with a doctor. You need to wake up now.”

Ghirahim didn’t respond for a moment, but then his eyes tightened and he blinked them open as he came out of sleep. For a split second he looked around as if he was lost, but then he saw Ganondorf from the side. He placed his hands on him and pushed up about five inches to get into a better position in his arms, breathing in hard with his nose.

“I-I’m up…” Once he felt more comfortable, he looked over and saw the town coming up. A thought suddenly came to Ghirahim. “You…have currency, right?” He looked at Ganondorf. “Enough for a doctor visit _and_ maybe some clothes and other supplies?”

“Yes, I currently have three hundred and forty rupees on me.”

Ghirahim relaxed back again. “Okay, that sounds reasonable.” They soon made it to the front of town and people of many different races were bustling around, some shopping at the marketplace. At the thought of reaching a town, Ghirahim had been worried that the people would treat him terribly for being different, but as he saw more people with pointed ears also, he felt better about this place. At least now he wouldn’t be judged on looks alone. “Before we go to the doctor, can we get me some clothes first? As comfortable as your cape is, I would prefer some pants. And a shirt that fits.”

“I don’t see why not.” Ganondorf carried Ghirahim through town, stopping to ask for directions from time to time. They soon found a basic clothing store that was fairly cheap. Ganondorf lowered Ghirahim to his feet by the side of the building. “Just stay here and I will buy a couple of sets.”

“Okay.”

After patting his head, Ganondorf entered the shop, closing the door gently behind him. Ghirahim waited at least ten minutes for him to return. Going off to the side to have privacy, Ganondorf helped Ghirahim get dressed, being extra careful not to move the diamond in fear of pulling it out. The pants barely covered the demon’s pale ass but that wouldn’t matter once the diamond was removed by the doctor. The pants were loose and comfortable and a simple dark grey, almost black color. The shirt was also plain, but comfortable, and it was warm due to the inlaid Wolfos fur. Ganondorf also bought a long-sleeved jacket with a zipper for at night when it got cold. Just a change of clothes had made Ghirahim feel better.

“Are you comfortable?” Ganondorf asked.

Ghirahim nodded. “Yes, thank you.”

“The other set I bought is made of heavier material for when it's cold out,” Ganondorf added as he picked the demon back up again. “Now let’s go find that doctor…”

Ghirahim sighed in relief, finally ready to no longer be reminded of the pain and suffering he had endured for all these years…


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Friendly reminder that there's a youtube playlist for songs that fit both the main story and this one. You can find it here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL5SBxGesmSp59mZQgmNWxdDigc0pQzXN9
> 
> You are welcome to suggest songs to me that you think will fit both fics. Be sure to give me the song title and artist/band name so I can look them up on youtube :)

This valley town was a lot bigger than it looked from the hill, Ganondorf and Ghirahim both realized as they walked a long way to get to the building that housed the local doctor. Ganondorf had to once again ask people that were around where the doctor took up residence. Once they found it, they saw a small waiting room with wooden chairs from large windows that were next to an oak door. A placard was on it in the corner that said “CLOSED”. Ghirahim felt what little hope he had slip away at reading it. Ganondorf’s eyes narrowed at it.

“Now what do we do?”

Stepping up to the door, Ganondorf tested the handle and found that it wasn’t locked yet. He had to duck in order to enter after he pushed the door open. Behind a counter space, a tall man wearing basic clothing looked up from what he was staring at and saw Ganondorf walk in.

“I am sorry, but we are now closed.”

Ganondorf stopped by the counter. “I saw your sign, but I have an emergency.” He nodded his head down at Ghirahim. “My friend here is badly injured and has an infection of some kind. He is in a lot of pain.”

The man behind the counter eyed both of them for a moment before he exhaled. “Alright, I will take a look at him.” Turning, he headed towards the back of the building. “Follow me.”

“Thank you,” Ganondorf said before following him, passing the counter on the way.

They entered a small room with a high bed in the middle. The man, who was obviously the doctor of this establishment, was putting on gloves that he took off a white counter.

“Lay the patient on the examination table and remove his shirt.” Ganondorf set Ghirahim down, removed his shirt, and then stepped around to the head of the bed to help lay him down. The doctor appeared by the bed and used a crank to lift the back of it into a relaxed sitting position. Ganondorf patted Ghirahim’s head in reassurance. “Now what seems to be the damage?”

“He was chained up and tortured for years, so there are many cuts and bruises,” Ganondorf explained. “What we are most concerned about is this diamond pin that was inserted into his body.” Ganondorf pointed at the red and yellow diamond at Ghirahim’s hip. “I have not removed it in fear of him bleeding to death.”

The doctor hummed to himself as he processed this. With careful, steady hands, he lifted the sash in order to see Ghirahim’s skin underneath and saw part of the spike showing. The demon closed his eyes tightly from pain when the doctor pressed a finger around the softened area. As he pressed the flesh down, blood and green pus-like liquid came from the puncture wound. After his quick inspection was complete, he lowered the sash and then looked up at Ghirahim’s face.

“In order to completely see just how bad the damage is, I have to remove the pin and sash from your skin. I will warn you now that it will be very painful once the spike is gone. Is that understood?”

Ghirahim swallowed hard in nervousness. “Yes…”

“Alright, then try to stay as still and relaxed as possible.”

As the doctor grabbed a cutting tool from a drawer, Ganondorf placed his hands on Ghirahim’s head and gently petted him. He also rubbed at his temples with his thumbs to help relax him.

“I am not going anywhere, Ghirahim, I promise,” the Gerudo King whispered.

Nodding and then taking a deep, calming breath, Ghirahim closed his eyes and tried not to think about the inevitable removal of the spiked diamond. He would rather not watch the doctor work, in fear of vomiting again. His hands and arms were shaking at his sides, but he took deep breaths for some extra oxygen and to stop the tremors. The doctor waited for him to no longer move even an inch before cutting the sash open, getting as close to the spike as possible in order to remove the sash. As it pulled, Ghirahim’s eyes tightened and he tensed up, trying not to move. The doctor worked very slowly and carefully as not to injure the poor demon further.

“About how long has this pin been in place?” he asked when he was almost done cutting. “Just a few months? A couple of years?”

Ghirahim took another deep breath while trying to remember. “A-Almost four y-years…?”

“Hmm, I am amazed you didn’t die from the infection during the first year. You must have had a very good reason to live to have survived this long…” Ghirahim didn’t respond to that. For some reason, he didn’t have the heart to tell the doctor that he wanted nothing more than to die for years now. Finally, after a lengthy two minutes, the sash was cut all the way through and the doctor carefully pulled it away from the spike. He set the broken ends down, exposing even more pale skin. His eyes narrowed at seeing the bruising and redness and infection up close. “In all my years of healing the sick, I have never seen anyone do this to another person before.”

“The town Ghirahim grew up in, the townspeople were afraid of him because he is a demon,” Ganondorf said. “They have tortured him for years.”

“Fear and hatred make desperate people do desperate things,” the doctor said absentmindedly. “Luckily, having demon blood is what allowed him to survive in the first place.”

Ghirahim wished they wouldn’t talk about his terrible life in front of him as if he wasn’t there, but there wasn’t anything he could do about it. The doctor had to know the truth about what caused such injuries, so he kept his mouth shut.

Now came the hard part: removing the diamond from Ghirahim’s flesh without making him bleed out. Grabbing a clean rag from under the bedside table, the doctor laid it out flat, slipped it under the diamond’s edge, wrapped it around the spike, and then pressed it down hard. Ghirahim snarled in pain from the added pressure, his hands digging into the sheet on the bed. Ganondorf quickly grabbed around his arms to prevent him from thrashing around. Tears streamed down the demon’s face from the terrible pain.

“I will have to pull the spike out slowly, so try to bear with it!” the doctor said loudly over Ghirahim’s painful howls.

Grabbing the top of the diamond in one hand, the doctor lifted it slowly about two inches, added more pressure to the rag, and then grabbed the spike with his hand. He gradually pulled it up and out of the puncture wound.

“GYAAAA-HAAAAAAAAAA!”

Once the sharp end of the spike came free, the doctor threw it down and then pressed both hands on the rag to cover the wound as blood and infection spilled out. The pain was so severe now that Ghirahim passed out after another painful howl. Now that he was out of it, cleaning the wound and inspecting the puncture would go by smoother. The doctor released a relieved breath, still pressing the rag to the wound.

“I warned him it would be painful…” He looked up at Ganondorf, who stared with sympathy down at Ghirahim. “He is going to be just fine.” Ganondorf glanced at him. “As I said before, his demon blood has kept him alive all these years.” The doctor looked back at his hands. “Still, the healing process will take time and he will be in pain for two or three weeks from the infection. I would advise to keep him overnight to make sure he survives the night.”

“I understand,” Ganondorf said.

For the next five minutes the doctor kept putting pressure on the puncture wound, to help stop the bleeding before he examined the wound with a light. The rag was soaking wet now, so he had to get another one to replace it. A few more minutes later, the doctor carefully lifted the second rag to see the status of the bleeding. For the most part it had stopped, which was a good sign. It meant that Ghirahim’s blood vessels could still clot and he would be able to heal just fine.

“He is very lucky, this Ghirahim. I still wonder how anyone could harm someone so severely this way. They must have been horrible monsters.”

“Yes, they most certainly are,” Ganondorf muttered to himself, as he was back to petting Ghirahim’s head.

Going to a cupboard attached to the wall after putting the rag back over the wound, the doctor reached in and took down a clear bottle that had a blue flame inside. He returned to the bed and held it by Ghirahim’s hip. He then removed the rag again to get a better look at the damage. Around the puncture hole itself, the skin and flesh was a sickly color due to the infection and there were thin bruises branching out along his skin from inside the hole. The wound just looked very painful and angry.

“Hmm… I am not entirely certain, but it seems the spike missed any vital organs that this demon body has. It even missed his pelvic bone. Whoever had placed the spike in certainly knew what they were doing to keep him alive.”

“What happens now?” Ganondorf asked after the room went silent for a time.

Lowering the bottle, the doctor looked to the right and pulled the side table with a bunch of medical equipment laid out on it over to him. “After the wound has been cleaned, I must stitch it up to prevent future bleeding. Then I can bandage him up and numb the pain with some special medication.” Grabbing a bottle of liquid and a thick pad of cotton, the doctor opened the bottle and poured a good amount over the wound. Once it touched Ghirahim’s skin, there was a sizzling sound and it began to foam up. In his unconscious state, Ghirahim’s body tightened from stinging pain. Once the sizzling stopped and there was just bubbly foam left, the doctor cleaned the excess away with the cotton before moving to another part of the room. “I can do my job much quicker if you weren’t hovering.”

Ganondorf looked up at him as he searched the cupboards for sutures, medical tape, and a clamp. “I won’t leave his side.”

The doctor returned with his supplies, saying, “You can stay in the room, but you need to stand off to the side.” Pulling up a chair, the doctor sat down before he got to work. “I need total concentration in order to do this correctly.”

Exhaling, Ganondorf looked back down at Ghirahim, running gentle fingers over his forehead. “I promise not to leave you, Ghirahim…”

The doctor glanced at the Gerudo King in admiration. “You care very deeply for him, don’t you?”

Ganondorf didn’t answer. Instead, he did what the doctor wanted and stood by a wall to watch him work. Looking back down at Ghirahim’s hip, the doctor began to work.

* * *

Stitching Ghirahim up and bandaging the wound took nearly an hour to finish because the doctor was so precise and careful with his work. Once he was all done, he stood up, took off his dirty gloves, and then lowered the bed back down into a laying position.

“That should do it.” Feeling relieved, Ganondorf moved to Ghirahim’s other side and ran his hand through his hair. The doctor looked up at him. “As I said before, I want to keep him here overnight. There will be no extra charge for that.”

Ganondorf looked at him. “How much do I owe you, then?”

“I charge fifty rupees for the examination and another one hundred for the procedure. Then one hundred pills for numbing the pain will cost an extra two hundred rupees. Or fifty for one hundred rupees. So your total will be two hundred and fifty rupees or three hundred and fifty rupees.” Ganondorf’s eyes narrowed slightly at hearing this. Out of the three hundred and forty rupees he had started off with, only one hundred and seventy remained. Noticing the discerned look, the doctor knew he was too short. “Until you can gain the remaining fee, I am afraid Ghirahim will not be able to leave here. Unless you wish to keep the pills out of the equation, which I highly not recommend, Ghirahim stays. I am sorry, but I have to make a living and I can’t make exceptions when I can’t do so with my regular patients-”

Ganondorf shook his head. “No, I understand. I have enough to pay for the examination and stitches, but not enough for the medication.”

The doctor stared somewhat sternly at him. “I must warn you, sir, that he will be in excruciating pain from here on out. The spike had masked the pain, but with it gone, he will be in agony. Not to mention the infection is still there. The best I can do is give him one injection to help fight the infection for ten rupees, but it won’t help with the pain for long.”

Ganondorf sighed in disappointment. He would have had enough for a few pain pills had he not bought the jacket. “I will pay you for the exam, the stitches, and the injection.”

The doctor gave a nod. “Let me administer the antibiotic and then you can pay me out front.”

“Of course.”

While the doctor went to find a needle and the right antibiotic for the infection, Ganondorf looked down at Ghirahim, wishing there was more he could do for him. The clothing store didn’t accept returns and he didn’t want to try reselling the jacket to someone else. Ghirahim would just have to endure the pain to come.

After filling the needle with the antibiotic, the doctor pushed the sharp tip through Ghirahim’s bandages and injected the drug right at the source. He then carefully slipped it back out before throwing the empty needle in the trash. After checking his vitals, the doctor turned towards the exam room door and headed for it. Ganondorf stared down at Ghirahim for a few seconds longer before turning and following the doctor out. Grabbing a bag of rupees from behind the counter, the doctor set it on the surface and untied it to open it.

“Tomorrow before you and Ghirahim leave, I will give you one pain pill for ten rupees if you have it. You can pay me then. But for now, your total is one hundred and sixty rupees.” Reaching into his armor for his bag of rupees, Ganondorf pulled it out and opened it. He removed all but ten rupees from it and set the pieces on the counter. The doctor counted them just to be sure before dumping them in his hoard. “Thank you.” Both men put their bags away before returning to Ghirahim’s room. The demon was still out cold, but he appeared peaceful. The doctor looked at Ganondorf from the doorway. “I will allow you to stay in here with him tonight. I trust that you will not try to steal from me while I’m at home with my wife?”

Ganondorf looked at him. “I give you my word.”

Nodding, the doctor stepped back to the doorway, grabbing the handle of the door. “I will be here at eight in the morning to check up on Ghirahim, and then I will give you a pain pill for ten rupees.”

“Alright. Thank you for your help.”

“Good night.”

The doctor left, leaving Ganondorf to care for Ghirahim alone. It was going to be a terribly long night…

* * *

As he expected, the night felt like it took days to pass as Ganondorf stayed up all night in order to watch over Ghirahim as he slept. At eight o’clock sharp, the doctor returned to his clinic. He entered Ghirahim’s room after checking his appointment book out front and removed the old bandaging while he still slept. Ganondorf was sitting in a chair by the bedside, running his fingers through Ghirahim’s hair. Even after days without bathing, his hair was still silky smooth.

“Did he sleep all through the night?” the doctor asked as he checked the stitches.

“Yes.”

When everything appeared to be in order, the doctor bandaged the area again before going to a cupboard. He took a pill out of a container and then returned to the bed. “Do you have ten rupees?” Reaching into his armor, Ganondorf took out his nearly empty bag of rupees, opened it, and took out his remaining ten. He then handed it to the doctor by passing it over Ghirahim’s body. They traded items before continuing their discussion. “I would advise you not move him much, lest his stitches come out. Keep a close eye on his condition as much as you can. Otherwise, he should be good to go.”

Ganondorf nodded. “Thank you for your help again.”

“I am a doctor, I have sworn to heal all who need it, no matter who they are or what they’ve done.”

There was a pause before Ganondorf and the doctor stood up. Being careful not to wake Ghirahim, Ganondorf pushed his arms underneath his body and picked him up. He held the demon close to his chest, staring down at him with concerned eyes for his safety. The doctor stared at them for a few seconds before turning around and leaving. After a while, Ganondorf released a long sigh, took off his cape to lay over Ghirahim, and then turned and left the room. He passed the doctor, who was talking to someone at the counter, and left the building, heading for out-of-town.

For most of the morning, Ganondorf walked through the forest in silence, trying to keep Ghirahim from waking up or moving too much as he traveled. Although he wore heavy boots and was hundreds of pounds muscle-wise, he never made a sound or tremor with each step. So Ghirahim would wake up only when he was ready to.

When it was almost two in the afternoon, Ganondorf had left the forest and was back to traveling a mostly empty plain. It was mostly hard ground with very stubbly grass, not very comfortable to lay on. Ganondorf glanced down at the still sleeping Ghirahim, knowing that falling asleep at night would not be easy. If only Ganondorf had had enough rupees to buy a large blanket…

‘ _It seems your bad luck will only get worse from here, my boy. I hope I will be able to ease at least some of the new pain that you will experience until we reach my castle.’_ There was no telling just how much pain Ghirahim would be in, nor if he would survive from it. Ganondorf needed to try staying as positive as possible for his sake. _‘Just a few more days, Ghirahim, and then you will be free…’_

Looking back up, Ganondorf continued on his way, actually praying to the Goddesses that Ghirahim would survive through this.

For the remainder of the day, Ganondorf kept glancing down at Ghirahim to make sure he was still breathing. He was still pretty much sound asleep, not having moved even an inch since losing consciousness last night. It was a miracle that he hadn’t awoken from pain yet. But that was soon about to change, and Ganondorf knew it too.

Sure enough, an hour from sundown, Ghirahim stirred, his eyes tightening as he inhaled sharply. As soon as his brain regained function, something began to change in him. He blinked tired eyes open, feeling something just below the surface. When he realized he was being held and moving, he looked up and saw Ganondorf staring down at him.

“Where-?”

“Shh, it is best if you didn’t speak,” Ganondorf cooed. “We are currently traveling a plain with very little trees and grass. We left the town at nine o’clock and you have been asleep since last night.” Ghirahim blinked, noticing that Ganondorf seemed discouraged or possibly even sad. “If we are lucky, we should arrive at my castle in four more days.”

Ghirahim looked away, his eyes nearly closing all the way. His brow suddenly furrowed when he felt like something was missing. Immediately his eyes roamed down to his hip and he noticed the hem of his pants covering what appeared to be white bandages. He hesitantly moved his hand to it, not sure what to expect. His brow furrowed even more when all he felt was the bandages. But wasn’t there something there once before?

“Gan-”

“Please do not speak, Ghirahim,” Ganondorf interrupted. “I want you to avoid feeling pain for as long as possible.” Confusion crossed Ghirahim’s face. Why would he feel pain? Sensing his concern, Ganondorf glanced down at him. “The doctor removed the pin from your hip, Ghirahim. It barely missed your vital organs, but there is a terrible infection inside the wound that will create terrible pain soon. I did not have enough rupees to buy medicine to numb the pain for later, except for one pill. I am saving it for when you really need it.”

Blinking at him again, Ghirahim looked back at his hip where the diamond had been, having a phantom limb effect the longer he stared at it. After a few seconds, tears formed in his eyes and then fell, a feeling of relief passing through him. Closing his eyes, the corners of his mouth went up in a watery smile. Finally he was free from the clutches of that disgusting town and the people who lived in it. He would no longer live in fear or the pain that they had caused for so many years. He could finally have a life where he was wanted and loved. And it was all thanks to this beautiful and kind Gerudo King.

‘ _Thank you, King Ganondorf. I will be forever in your debt…’_

Ghirahim would stand by Ganondorf’s side no matter what. Now and forever, he would be worthy of love…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> PLEASE REFRAIN FROM PUTTING "UPDATE SOON" OR SIMILAR COMMENTS ON MY WORK! YOU WILL GET YOUR UPDATES WHEN YOU GET THEM! PLEASE BE PATIENT WITH AUTHORS, THANK YOU!


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Scene warning: Character wanting to die due to agonizing pain (Suicide warning)
> 
> I'm so sorry I haven't been working on my Zelda stories lately ;w; I got heavily in the Star Wars TFA fandom and have been prioritizing my werewolf au over everything else. I also had writers block, but now I'm working on multiple things little by little
> 
> The current chapter I'm writing for this is almost done, so I decided to post this now rather than wait to have the current working chapter done
> 
> Thank you for your support and patience!

“Erng, D-DAMMEEEEET!” It was the next night and there were just three more days left until they reached their destination. But in the meantime, Ganondorf had to sit and listen to Ghirahim’s screams and crying as most of his body hurt and ached. “M-MAKE IT _S-STOP_!”

Another scream of pain passed through him, causing Ganondorf to become even more distraught.

“You must endure it, Ghirahim. It will stop on its own eventually, but you must be patient.”

Ghirahim jerked his head back and forth along the ground, sweat pouring down his face from fever. The worst pain came from his puncture wound no thanks to the infection. Every two seconds it would hit with full force again, causing more screams to escape him. Heavy tears streamed down his face and into his ears.

“I-IT HURTS! IT HURTS SO MUCH!”

“I know, Ghirahim, I know,” Ganondorf tried to comfort him.

“GRAHAAAAAAA! STOP IT, STOP IT, STOP _EEEEEEEEEEET_!” Ganondorf looked away in shame. There was nothing he could do to stop the excruciating pain now. Their only pill had been taken that morning when Ghirahim had awoken to terrible pain. Another shock wave of pain spread through Ghirahim’s lower body, which caused him to thrash around. “NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO! FUCKING STOP IT!”

For hours upon hours that night Ghirahim screamed and cried and wished it would all just end. He couldn’t take this white hot, angry pain any longer. All night long he never slept and he was still as hurt as ever as Ganondorf carried him when they continued their long journey to the Gerudo King’s kingdom. Ghirahim kept tossing and turning in Ganondorf’s arms, his screams of pain deafening him. It was amazing that his voice hadn’t given out yet. It would be very sore after it was all over.

“J-JUST KILL ME—KILL ME PLEASE! I-I CAN’T TAKE IT ANYMORE!”

Ganondorf tightened his grip on Ghirahim's body with his arms. “Just try Ghirahim.”

“NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, _NO_!”

Ganondorf wanted to slap him, but he held himself back knowing it would just stress out the demon more. All day this went on and the both of them were hating every second of it. By nightfall, Ganondorf had to leave Ghirahim at camp because his hearing was practically shot at this point. He forcefully sat down, sighing in mental exhaustion. Even from this distance, he could still faintly hear Ghirahim’s screaming.

“Just a couple more days, Ghirahim,” Ganondorf whispered to himself. “Just a few more days and the pain will end…”

That night was just as long and tiresome as the last. Ghirahim couldn’t sleep at all, the pain was still as horrendous as ever, and on top of all that, he kept having to vomit from the fever and infection. He was also very dehydrated and needed water. They needed to find a water source soon.

“I JUST WANT TO FUCKING DIE ALREADY!”

Finally very fed up with hearing this over and over again, Ganondorf stopped, laid Ghirahim down, and then punched him into unconsciousness. When the demon no longer moved, Ganondorf picked him back up and continued again. He soon released a heavy breath of relief when all was silent.

“Finally, some peace and quiet…”

For the rest of the day Ghirahim stayed unconscious. When he woke up around three in the morning, there wasn’t any pain. He soon felt something dragging along the palm of his left hand. Looking over from his lying position with tired eyes, he saw Ganondorf gently massaging the palm of his hand and fingers. Ghirahim blinked a few times, finding this a very strange thing to do.

“Ga-” Ghirahim had to stop because his mouth was so dry that his tongue hardly moved. He swallowed as hard as he could, but that only stung his sore throat. There just wasn’t enough water in his body to moisten his mouth with. Growling weakly, he jerked his long tongue out of his mouth and licked at some sweat. It was disgusting tasting, but at least his mouth wasn’t that dry anymore. “Ganondorf, what-?”

“It is a small trick I learned long ago, when I was a boy,” Ganondorf suddenly interrupted, never taking his eyes off Ghirahim’s hand. “My grandmother started doing this to my hands after I had lost my mother to a fatal, desert disease. It had very calming affects and I didn’t hurt so much. I thought that if it could work on me, then it would work on you.” Ghirahim blinked at him, not sure what to say. Looking to the night sky, he saw a million stars and the half full moon. For some reason, he found it to be very beautiful. “…Is it working?”

Jerking his head around to look at Ganondorf again, Ghirahim saw him staring at his face. There was a long pause, but then Ghirahim swallowed to find his voice again. “Yeah…”

Smiling weakly, Ganondorf placed a comforting hand to his cheek for a few seconds. “Try to go back to sleep…”

Moving his hand away, Ganondorf looked back at Ghirahim’s palm to continue his massage trick. Inhaling deeply and holding it briefly, Ghirahim looked back up at the sky, trying to figure out how he had become so blessed…

‘ _Since when did I get so lucky…?’_

That was the last thing Ghirahim thought about before he drifted off to sleep once more.

* * *

Ghirahim managed to sleep a full twelve hours as he and Ganondorf traveled some more. The Gerudo King had some good news to share with the demon that afternoon.

“It is very faint, but on the horizon is the final obstacle you and I must face before we reach my kingdom.”

Turning his head in the direction they were going, Ghirahim tried to get a good look, but the heat masked whatever the obstacle was. “I can’t tell what it is.”

“It is a very high and very steep mountain range,” Ganondorf told him. “At the top, it is flat rock and we will see a magnificent sight once we get there. It will have to be climbed, otherwise it would take at least eight more days to walk around and find an opening.”

Ghirahim looked up at him. “And how do you suppose we get up there? You can’t carry me in your arms…”

“We will figure that conundrum out after we get to the bottom of the mountain.”

“Mh-hm…”

Ghirahim lowered his gaze, seeing his hands by his sides. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw pink bandages around his waist. He blinked at the spot, feeling like there was something missing. It took him a while to remember that he had felt that once before and it instantly came to him: the diamond that had been pinned to his hip and missed vital organs was gone. In a flash, he saw the doctor pulling the diamond out before he fell unconscious from the terrible pain.

“How are you feeling today, by the way?” Ganondorf asked.

Ghirahim glanced off to the side, needing to concentrate to figure it out. The first thing he noticed was the dull ache in his hip area. There was some burning sensation as well, but it was nowhere near as painful as the last few days. He then realized he was pretty hungry since he hadn’t been able to stomach eating due to fever and pain. Other than that, he felt much better than the last few days.

“I’m feeling better. There’s not a lot of pain today.”

Ganondorf smiled. “That is good to hear. If we don’t reach the mountain by nightfall, you will try to eat something.”

Ghirahim turned his head away from him. “Okay…”

They continued towards their destination in silence for a long time. By the time it was almost too dark to see, they were just a couple hours away from the bottom of the mountain. Ganondorf set up a fire and warmed up some leftover Wolfos meat. They would only have enough for a tiny breakfast snack in the morning. Ghirahim was laid out on his back, staring up at the sky as he waited for dinner. He wasn’t entirely sure if he was up to eating yet or not, but he would try. He really needed some of his strength back. Ten minutes later and Ganondorf was helping him sit up. The pain in Ghirahim’s hip flared up from being hunched over.

“Stop, stop, stop, put me back down!”

Startled, Ganondorf quickly laid him back down, being careful not to drop him. “What’s wrong?”

Ghirahim closed his eyes and took very deep breaths until the pain subsided. After one more hard inhale through his nose, he relaxed his body and swallowed. “I-I’m sorry, the pain came back, that’s all.”

There was silence as Ganondorf tried to figure out the best way to feed Ghirahim without disturbing his wounds. Humming deeply to himself, the Gerudo King grabbed a small chunk of meat and quickly cut it up into strips and then half strips. He then gathered them up in one of the cloths, stood, and moved around Ghirahim to reach his head. Sitting behind him, he set the meat down, gently grabbed under the demon’s armpits, and pulled him back to rest his head on his lap. Ghirahim was now partly propped up, just enough to prevent his flesh from folding, thus creating major pain.

“Should I feed you?” Ghirahim thought about it and then nodded. Opening the cloth, Ganondorf grabbed a piece of the meat and led it to Ghirahim’s mouth. The demon flicked his tongue out, wrapping the end around the meat and part of the Gerudo King’s fingertips before sucking it into his mouth and chewing. After he swallowed, he opened his mouth again as a sign that he wanted more. Ganondorf snorted softly in amusement at him before picking up another piece and placing it on his tongue. “Let me know when you are full.”

For the next few minutes Ganondorf fed Ghirahim the wonderful meat that was giving him some energy and nutrients that he had lost over the last week. He managed to eat every cut up piece that was there. With a full belly, he closed his eyes and yawned wide and loud, showing off his teeth. Sniffing, he turned his head to the side and drifted off to sleep. Ganondorf ran his hand through his hair to help relax him. He admired the demon for a while, feeling something new form in the pit of his stomach. It was almost strange, caring for someone other than himself for once. It actually filled Ganondorf with a wonderful feeling that he had never felt before now.

“I foresee amazing things happening for us in the future, my precious little demon…”

Closing his eyes after an amused snort, Ganondorf carefully laid on his side, pulling Ghirahim higher up along his body. He then wrapped a gentle arm around his chest, pressing his body against him. When all was silent except for the crackling fire close-by, Ganondorf drifted off into a half asleep state, spooning Ghirahim all through the night.

* * *

It was very sunny and warm the next day. At nine in the morning, Ganondorf and Ghirahim had headed off for the mountains that were not too far away by foot. Around eleven, they finally made it. They both looked up as high as they could, but they couldn’t see the top. This made Ghirahim feel panicked, because how were they going to climb up there?

“I don’t know if I can do this.”

Ganondorf looked down at him. “Don’t worry, I have figured out the best way to get up there since we got up this morning.” Setting Ghirahim on his feet, Ganondorf removed his cape from his shoulders, tore it down the center long ways, and then tightly knotted the two ends together. Ghirahim watched him make a rope while using the rock wall for support. “You are going to get on my back and hold onto me. Then I’m going to wrap this around us so you don’t slip off.”

Ghirahim looked at Ganondorf’s middle, noticing another problem. “I don’t think your makeshift rope will be long enough.”

“And why not?”

Ghirahim gave him an exasperated look. “Have you looked at yourself in a mirror lately?” Ganondorf looked down at himself, confused. “Your armor is too heavy and thick. Not to mention you’re practically the width of a mammoth. So I really don’t think me adding onto that will give the rope enough of a tying range.” There was a pause. After thinking about this for a bit, Ganondorf realized he was right. “So, do you have anymore bright ideas?”

There was another pause, this one much longer than the last, but Ganondorf eventually found the answer to this problem. “As a matter of fact, Ghirahim, I do.” Ghirahim quirked an eyebrow at him. Handing the rope over to him, Ganondorf began to remove his armor pieces, starting with his shoulder guards. Ghirahim watched him drop each piece without care to the ground. They clattered and slammed as they hit each other. Ghirahim had to lift his foot when a leg guard nearly bounced onto it from another piece. Now Ganondorf had no armor on except for the ones on his boots, which he would need to climb the protruding rocks or crevices with. He still had on his black pants and shirt that he had let Ghirahim borrow for a while. “There we go.”

Ghirahim was impressed. “That works.”

Ganondorf patted him heavily on the head. “This is why you never doubt me, Ghirahim. Because I always find a solution.” Ghirahim pursed his lips and furrowed his brow in annoyance at him. Chuckling deeply, Ganondorf lowered his hand and then faced the mountain wall. He then crouched down as low as possible. “Climb onto my back and wrap your arms around my neck.”

Ghirahim glanced at his back, but then he noticed his hair. It was long and somewhat pointy at the ends. He hoped it was soft to lay on. Keeping his hand to the wall for support, Ghirahim walked closer to Ganondorf, handing the makeshift rope to him. He then placed his hand on his upper arm once he got there and moved around behind him. Lifting one foot onto his thigh, Ghirahim pressed down hard to get a good grip and then hoisted himself up. His body stretched in pain, causing him to hiss loudly. Ganondorf’s hands were instantly under his legs and helping him up the rest of the way. Ghirahim quickly wrapped his arms around his beefy neck and held on tight. After helping him get his legs around his thinner waist, Ganondorf threw one end of the rope around Ghirahim, caught it, and then tied it around both of them as tight as possible. Ghirahim managed to get a face full of thick, soft hair as he was pressed harder to the very strong, muscular back.

“Wow…”

Ganondorf simply smiled mirthfully at Ghirahim’s amazement. Now that they were stuck to each other like glue, Ganondorf stepped to the wall, found his first hand holds, placed his right foot on the bottom, and then pushed up off the ground, taking their first step up the treacherous mountain.

For the first two hours neither of the travelers spoke as Ganondorf climbed as quickly as possible. He wagered they would reach the top before nightfall, if lady luck was on their side. She was doing them wonders already though, seeing as there were many grips and holes to use for support so far. Ganondorf and Ghirahim very well could make it out of there alive and almost in one piece.

Behind him, Ghirahim had his face turned to the right as he rested on Ganondorf’s plush hair. It was the most comfortable thing he had felt in a long time. He could fall asleep in it, he mused. After blinking rapidly a few times, he closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and then let it out in a sigh.

“How are you doing back there?” Ganondorf asked half an hour later.

“Fine, I guess.”

“How about we talk to pass the time,” Ganondorf suggested.

Ghirahim snuggled further into his hair. “Talk about what?”

“Hmm, let’s see…” There was a pause. “So you don’t know your mother, but what about your father? Was he ever around?”

Ghirahim’s eyes opened partway, feeling sad all of a sudden. “No, I was alone…”

“…I am sorry to hear that…”

Ghirahim adjusted his grip and position on Ganondorf’s back. “If I remember correctly, you said only one male is born in a random generation. But how is that possible with only women in your species?”

Ganondorf snorted. “That is a very good question. One that I don’t even know the answer to.”

“Oh. I see…”

They continued climbing in silence for a little while again. Ghirahim was actually just fine resting and possibly falling asleep like this to pass the time.

“How is your hip?”

“It only hurts a little now.”

“Once we reach my castle, I will summon Syrup the Witch to help heal you faster. She can brew many types of potions and pastes for health situations. She will fix you right up.”

Ghirahim glanced at him out of the corner of his eye. “I don’t know what all I can do to repay you.”

Ganondorf smiled. “I will find something useful for you to do. I see a lot of potential in you.”

Ghirahim lifted his head off his hair to look at the back of him. “Excuse me if I’m too much of a pessimist to believe that.” He looked disdainfully off to the side, seeing the curving side of the mountain. “Letting those humans destroy me so easily is proof of how pathetic and weak I am.”

Ganondorf glanced at him out of the corner of his eye as he stopped climbing. “If that were true, Ghirahim, you would already be dead.”

Looking back up, Ganondorf continued to climb, letting Ghirahim think about that for as long as he needed to.

* * *

The remaining climb was silent and Ghirahim had fallen asleep a few hours previous. Ganondorf was getting tired, but he knew he had to keep going, otherwise they would fall and die. The climb was their one-way ticket to the bitter end. The bottom of the sun was just barely below the horizon when Ganondorf looked up to see how much further he was to the top. A look of relief passed his face. In just one hour, they would be home free.

The sun was now halfway below the horizon, but the light was still going strong. Minutes later, and Ganondorf reached up one more time, feeling nothing but air. Sighing in relief, he grabbed the mountain’s edge with both hands, dug his fingers into the rock, and then pushed off with his feet, finally reaching the top. He then placed his right foot on the edge and pulled himself up the rest of the way. Stepping forward, Ganondorf carefully stood up straight, took a few more steps to the other side, and then looked over the lip. An accomplished smile formed on his face as he saw deep within the hollowed out chasm.

“Ghirahim, wake up. I have something magnificent to show you…”

Nothing happened for a moment, but then Ghirahim’s eyes tightened and then slowly opened. He blinked the tired out of them before lifting himself a little higher since he had slipped somewhat in his sleep.

“Mmh, wh-what?”

Untying the cape rope, Ganondorf let it fall to the ground at his feet in order to help Ghirahim down. The demon moved to his right side, stretching and yawning, his snake tongue flicking out jerkily. Once his eyesight was back to normal, he took a step forward and looked over the edge. Gradually, his eyes widened in awe.

Down below, the sun casting a beautiful reddish light over it, was the most amazing structure Ghirahim had ever seen. Ganondorf’s castle was ginormous and was a beautiful hue of colors of all kinds. Surrounding the castle, which was in a large clearing, were different kinds of terrain. Behind it and along part of the sides was a lush forest that stretched out as far as the eye could see. Down below were purple-ish/grey rocks and there appeared to be a crystal clear lake to one side. There was just so many acres of unfilled land, but it was just perfect. Although he hadn’t even seen the half of it, Ghirahim felt a sense of pride fill him. The longer he stared at it, the more he realized how wonderful it was to be here. Closing his eyes, his mouth trembling, Ghirahim began to cry, unable to believe it. He was finally home. He was free!

“Th-Thank you… Thank you so much!”

Ghirahim’s shoulders shook as he continued to cry tears of joy. For now and forever, he was going to live in peace, the past lying far, far behind him…


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I shouldn't update until I work on more chapters, but I feel bad for making you guys wait D: I definitely wanna take a break from my Star Wars stuff and work on other things, so hopefully I can get motivated for my LoZ stuff for a while

Since the climb down would be a dangerous one, Ghirahim and Ganondorf stayed on top of the mountain until morning. Ghirahim had to climb on the Gerudo King’s back again, tying the cape rope tightly around him. They then made their way down as carefully as possible.

“Do you live in your castle all by yourself?” Ghirahim asked. “Doesn’t it get lonely in such a huge place?”

“No, I have a whole army of monsters and creatures living in my kingdom,” Ganondorf explained. “Some months they go out on missions or travel around to discover new wonders of the kingdom. Far beyond what our eyes can see on top of the mountain is where the Gerudo Desert and Hyrule lay. You must cross the desert to reach that side of Hyrule Field.”

Ghirahim glanced above them for a moment. “You mean we were in Hyrule once already?”

Ganondorf nodded. “Yes, Hyrule covers most of the planet and it surrounds everything else. Nothing else lays beyond Hyrule. Or at least, we have yet to discover anything more.”

Looking back ahead, Ghirahim lowered his head to Ganondorf’s back and hair, having all sorts of questions about their world now. He had known nothing but that Goddess-forsaken town, so all of this new information was very overwhelming.

“What if no one likes me here?”

There was a long pause. Ganondorf soon exhaled.

“You do not have to worry about that, Ghirahim. We are just one big family and anyone being hurtful to their own on purpose will not like the consequences.”

Ghirahim slowly smiled at hearing this. “I certainly hope so…”

Ganondorf smiled back, glad to see Ghirahim hadn’t lost complete faith in him yet. The rest of the climb down to the different rock formations that overlapped each other from the bottom of the mountain was fairly quick and easy. Once he could walk down normally, Ganondorf untied the rope, wrapped it around his upper arm, and then helped Ghirahim get in his arms before they continued. He had to move this way and that to reach the right rocks and boulders. In just twenty minutes, Ghirahim would be home.

“Thank you, for everything,” the demon spoke quietly. Ganondorf just nodded. Turning his face to his chest, Ghirahim closed his eyes and inhaled his interesting scent. “I now have a reason to live…”

“You are most welcome.”

They continued for the castle in silence. Fifteen minutes later and they were at the large door. Stopping a couple of feet away, Ganondorf kicked the bottom as hard as he could to serve as a knock. The sound could be heard echoing from within. They waited a few seconds before the door very slowly opened inward, revealing a gigantic foyer. Keeping a good grip on Ghirahim, Ganondorf headed inside, where an impish creature called a Miniblin came out to greet whoever arrived. Once he saw it was Ganondorf, he rushed forward, lifting his free hand to his forehead to salute him.

“Welcome back, master Ganondorf!”

Ghirahim quirked an incredulous eyebrow at it. _‘Master?’_

Suddenly seeing the demon, the Miniblin’s eyes widened. “Who is that?!”

Suddenly out of nowhere, a bunch of creatures began to emerge, looking curious as they saw Ganondorf with someone new in his arms. Ganondorf smiled at all of them.

“It is good to be home once again.” He nodded his chin down at Ghirahim. “As for who this is, I will make a full announcement later. For now, I must take him to the hospital wing. He is badly injured and needs full medical attention right now.” There was a pause as Ganondorf looked to a Bokoblin, which was a goblin-like creature that usually carried spears or swords. “I need you to summon Syrup for me. I need her medicines for puncture wounds, cuts and scrapes, and bruises. Tell her it is an emergency.”

Lifting his greyish/blue hand, the Bokoblin saluted. “Right away, master Ganondorf!”

Turning around, he rushed off, snarling at people to move out-of-the-way. Then the rest of the creatures stepped aside to give Ganondorf access to a magnificent, gold and marble staircase. As they went up and up a lot of floors, Ghirahim saw so many different monsters that he never even heard of before all over the place. And they greeted Ganondorf the same way, by calling him master. Ghirahim’s curiosity on who this Gerudo King was kept getting even stronger. It would take a miracle to be able to learn it all.

They soon reached floor number…something or other; Ghirahim had lost count a few minutes ago. Going to a white door, Ganondorf turned sideways, grabbed the handle with his left hand while holding Ghirahim tight, and then opened it. He stepped inside what looked like the doctor’s clinic from that one town, only bigger and looking more like a hospital. It was very sterile in here that it almost made Ghirahim lightheaded. Going to an examination table close to a wall, Ganondorf set Ghirahim down and stretched his legs out on top of it.

“Stay here. I will be back.”

Ganondorf walked off and out of sight. Ghirahim waited a few seconds before looking at his hip and placing his hand on the bandages. He felt very intimidated, being alone in such a place. He didn’t know how long it would take before he felt right at home.

‘ _ **If**_ _I ever feel at home here…’_

Ghirahim’s eyes narrowed softly at the disappointing thought. It could take months, even years before he felt normal and unafraid of the world. He had no idea what he was getting into just yet, and that was frightening in and of itself.

Sighing, Ghirahim carefully laid down, closing his eyes to rest while he waited. Minutes later and he felt his head being lifted and something soft and plush was set underneath. He opened his eyes to see Ganondorf placing two pillows under his head and upper back to keep him propped up.

“Comfortable?” Ganondorf asked.

Ghirahim smiled weakly at him. “Yes, thank you.”

Grabbing a chair after fluffing up the pillows, Ganondorf sat down at the bedside, reaching for the bandages at Ghirahim’s hip. “Syrup the Witch should be here soon. She will need to examine you, so you need to get undressed.” Nodding, Ghirahim pulled his arms out of the sleeves of his shirt and then pulled it off. His long bangs went up and then fell back down over half his face. As he handed the shirt to Ganondorf, he scratched vigorously at the back of his head on the right side. “Once Syrup clears you, you can have a nice long, hot bath.”

Ghirahim folded his legs in order to take his pants off. “I could stay there for days with how dirty I feel.”

“When was the last time you bathed?”

Ghirahim shrugged one shoulder as he pulled the second pant leg off. “I have no idea. The only time I was ever somewhat clean was when it rained or the townspeople dumped buckets of water on me when it was particularly cold or hot. The winters were not kind to me.”

‘ _Neither was anything else in that terrible place,’_ Ganondorf thought bitterly. “Well, you will be cared for properly here, I assure you. You even get to have your own room with your very own bathroom.” That made Ghirahim smile in gratitude. He was about to thank Ganondorf again when the hospital wing door opened. They both looked over and saw a medium-height, long-nosed witch wearing a dark purple robe dress and a tall witch’s hat enter the hospital. Ganondorf turned to her as she approached. “Thank you for coming at such short notice, Syrup.”

Syrup stopped next to him, tipping her hat at him. “It was no problem, Ganondorf. I am happy to oblige.” Turning, she looked at Ghirahim, who was staring at her curiously. “Aah, a new patient. You truly spoil me, Ganondorf.”

Ghirahim didn’t quite like how she spoke to the Gerudo King.

“Syrup, this is Ghirahim. Ghirahim, this is Syrup.”

“Welcome to Ganondorf’s kingdom, my young friend,” Syrup said with a tip of her head in greeting.

Ghirahim blinked at her, not sure what to think of her yet. “Erm, thank you.”

Syrup looked at his body. “Let’s see what the damage is then.” Ghirahim laid very still as she began to remove the makeshift bandages that Ganondorf had fastened to his wounds. “Hm, not as bad as I expected them to be.”

“Ghirahim is a demon, Syrup. That is how he has survived from the infection this whole time,” Ganondorf explained. “Gradually his wounds would heal at a faster rate than a mere human. So believe me, they were much worse than this.”

“I will take your word for it,” Syrup said as she began to feel the faint cuts and gash marks. “You are very lucky, Ghirahim.”

Ghirahim snorted. “If I was so _lucky_ I wouldn’t have been tortured in the first place.”

Syrup patted his hand gently. “There are many different kinds of luck, my young friend, but we can’t be blessed with them all. Life would be far too _dull_ if we got everything we ever wanted at the snap of our fingers.” When Ghirahim didn’t say anything back, Syrup moved to his hip and ripped the bandages with a sharp nail to free them. She shoved the tattered ends aside before looking at Ghirahim’s puncture. “Well this one sure is intriguing, isn’t it?”

“There used to be a sharp spike there,” Ganondorf said. “We found a town with a doctor that had it removed. It barely missed vital organs and had caused the infection in the first place. It was more painful out than in.”

“Yes, it is an angry wound,” Syrup stated. “But nothing my elixir cannot cure in a jiffy.” Reaching into a pouch around her waist, Syrup opened it and rummaged through it. Grabbing the long neck of a big, rounded bottle, she pulled it out and uncorked it. Inside was a bubbly green liquid that smelled rather minty. She looked at Ghirahim’s face before pouring it over his hip. “I will warn you that it will burn. But it will rid you of the remaining infection and close the wound up. If you have such luck on your side, there will not be a scar.”

Ghirahim’s eyes widened slightly at hearing this. “You mean, I won’t have to be reminded of what those humans did to me after this?”

Syrup stared thoughtfully at him. “Physically, yes. Mentally, however, is a different story altogether…”

Ghirahim didn’t know what to say. As Syrup began to tilt the bottle head towards his hip, the demon looked to the left, steeling himself for when the inevitable pain would come. His eyes suddenly slammed shut and he hissed in pain once the elixir was absorbed into his skin through the stitches.

“Erg, it _hurts_ …!”

Syrup poured a good amount before straightening the bottle up. “It will be over soon, my young friend, I promise.”

As the elixir stayed on Ghirahim’s skin, it sizzled and bubbled up for a few minutes. As it began to dissipate, the burning let up and Ghirahim was able to relax again. He hadn’t realized he had tightened his body up so much until he was collapsed against the pillows. Ganondorf smiled encouragingly at him.

“You should see what that elixir is doing to your wound, Ghirahim.”

“I’ll pass…” the demon grumbled out.

Soon the pain was all gone and there was no scar or indent at all. Syrup cut the sutures with a thin blade and then pulled them out of the skin. She put the cork back on the bottle, placed it in her pouch, and then pulled out a tube with a cap on it. Turning to Ganondorf, she handed it to him.

“This is for his minor cuts and wounds. Apply it morning and night for three days and then Ghirahim will be completely healed.”

Hearing that good news, Ghirahim looked at Syrup with a smile. “Thank you.”

Syrup looked at him, smiling back and giving a nod. “You are most welcome, my young friend. I advise you get a good night’s rest and to stay relaxed for a few days.”

“I will make sure he doesn’t do anything too strenuous, Syrup,” Ganondorf said as he walked around the table to Ghirahim’s other side. “Thank you again.”

Syrup waved her hand in the air as if it wasn’t that big of a deal. “You know I would do anything for you, my dear. You saved my daughter’s life after all.”

Ghirahim glanced at Ganondorf out of the corner of his eye, still unable to believe some of the good things he had done. If there was one thing Ghirahim knew about the Gerudo King’s scent, it was how dark and powerful it was. The fact he was capable of heroic deeds at all was a huge surprise to the demon.

“If I need you for anything else, I will visit,” Ganondorf told Syrup as he began to apply the new medicine to Ghirahim’s minor wounds.

“Then I bade you a good night,” Syrup said as she stepped back a few inches, bowing slightly. “If anything drastically changes, be sure to contact me right away.”

Syrup turned around and headed for the door as Ganondorf said, “Do not worry, we will.” As Syrup left, she closed the door gently behind her. Ganondorf looked down at Ghirahim then. “Once we are done in here, I will show you to your room.”

Ghirahim looked up at him. “I greatly appreciate what you have done for me, Ganondorf, but I don’t think-”

“Nonsense,” Ganondorf interrupted, capping the tube once he was all done. “You have nowhere else to go. I am graciously offering my home to you, so I insist that you stay. I could always use more soldiers for my army, you know.”

“I don’t know if I know how to be a soldier,” Ghirahim uttered.

“Well, in a few days we will have to test out your fighting abilities and see what you need training for.”

“I don’t even know if I have powers, Ganondorf. I’m _useless_!” Ghirahim whined.

Ganondorf smiled weakly at him. “You never know until you try, Ghirahim. Remember what I told you: I foresee amazing things for the two of us in the future, therefore you cannot leave. Besides, I want you to stay.” Placing his hand on the demon’s head, Ganondorf smiled bigger at Ghirahim while ruffling up his white hair. “My usual minions have gotten boring to be around, anyhow…”

Ghirahim blinked at him, still unsure, but deciding not to argue. Lowering his gaze, he exhaled and then nodded. “Okay, Ganondorf, I will stay. For now.”

Ganondorf lowered his hand and then took a step back. “I promise you, Ghirahim, that you will never want to leave.”

‘ _Don’t make promises you can’t keep,’_ Ghirahim thought bitterly.

“Now, get up and I will find you a room.” Deciding to humor him, Ghirahim turned around and carefully stepped down. Not being able to walk for a very long time now, he was unbalanced and needed to use the table for support. Noticing him having difficulties, Ganondorf walked around the table and steadied him by grabbing his arms. “Starting tomorrow, you will need to learn how to walk properly again. Would you like me to carry you?”

Ghirahim nodded, feeling very exhausted despite not having an infection or fever anymore. Picking him up bridal style, Ganondorf headed out of the hospital wing, went up a few more flights of stairs, and then began to check for any empty sleeping quarters. Finding one next door to a white door with flames and a silhouette of a dragon head on it, Ganondorf carried Ghirahim inside. The demon’s eyes widened in surprise at the room. It was fairly big and empty except for a large bed set within a dark oak canopy on the right wall. On the far wall was another door, which led into a bathroom that was a quarter the size of the room. There were large windows across from the door, bringing in some much needed sunlight.

“I- This is- I can’t believe-” Ganondorf chuckled at Ghirahim’s stuttering. The demon quickly looked up at him in bewilderment. “I really get to have this room all to myself?”

Ganondorf smiled. “That’s right.” Ghirahim looked around again, completely stunned. Moving to the bed, Ganondorf set him down on the edge and then crouched in front of him to be at eye level. Ghirahim looked at him, tears forming in his eyes. “You can do whatever you want with your room, Ghirahim. You have the freedom to do whatever you desire in here. This will be your space and your space only if that is what you want. But you have to stay here, with me, and with my army. Isn’t that what you have always wanted in this dark world? Is to be free and loved?” Tears finally streamed down Ghirahim’s cheeks. All he could do was nod. Ganondorf placed his hand to his cheek, wiping the tears away with his thumb. “I have given you a reason to live, Ghirahim. Please do not squander it away by being alone…” The room got quiet except for Ghirahim’s sniffling. After a few seconds, he nodded again, wiping the other side of his face down. Ganondorf lowered his hand and then stood up. “I will let you get some sleep. In a few hours, I will check up on you, in case you want a meal.”

Sniffing one more time, Ghirahim nodded, finally feeling better. “That would be great, thank you.”

“And if you wish to take a bath, there is cleaning oil and cold liquid for your hair. Use all the hot water you need, as well as taking the time to relax.” Ghirahim nodded in understanding. After gently patting him on the head, Ganondorf headed for the door. “If you ever need anything, Volvagia’s room is next door. It is the one with the dragon on it.”

“Alright.” Ganondorf left, closing the door quietly behind him. After waiting a few seconds in case he came back, Ghirahim stood up and used the canopy posts for support as he made his way for his bathroom. Once inside, he was in awe at how spacious the place was. On his left was a large, white bath tub, a toilet halfway between the tub and marble sink against the back wall, and a towel and clothing closet to the right. With the help of the wall, Ghirahim stumbled his way for the bath tub, found the knobs, and quickly jerked the hot water handle over to open the pipe. Water instantly rushed out of the spout and began to fill the tub rather quickly. Ghirahim snorted in amusement. “It’s the little things that count I suppose.”

After turning the cold water on some, Ghirahim waited for it to fill up close to the top before turning the faucet off and carefully stepping in. He then lowered himself down, the water reaching a little past his shoulders. The hot water quickly warmed him up and he was feeling even better already. Sighing in content, Ghirahim lowered himself down to cover the rest of his body, minus his head, with the water. He closed his eyes, just letting the steam and heat fill every pore of his aching body. Things were slowly starting to look up for him here.

‘ _I will try to stay alive for you, Ganondorf. And maybe one day I will be even better than I was before.’_

That was the last thing Ghirahim thought about before he turned his head away for a bit of relaxation.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had wanted to wait to post this when I finished chapter 8, but since I've taken so long to work on my LoZ fics I decided to post it finally. I'm going to do my best to balance out all current stories I'm working on so that I can update more frequently (writer's block has been my biggest issue)
> 
> Thank you all for your patience!

Ghirahim’s first day and night at Ganondorf’s castle had been a blessing. His large bed was just the perfect amount of comfort and warmth and he didn’t want to leave it. He slept soundly through the entire night, his body felt refreshed and squeaky clean after his long bath, and his hair felt silkier and softer than it had in years. The sheets had been so airy and light that Ghirahim had opted to sleeping nude under the sheets and bed cover. It was the best night of his entire fucked up life thus far.

Around ten the first morning, Ghirahim was curled up under the large blanket, completely covered by it and feeling as toasty as an oven, when he woke up. Carefully, he pulled the blanket off his head, straightened out a bit, and then slowly sat up, stretching his arms up high and yawning contentedly. He then lowered his arms, pushing hair behind his ear. As he looked around his room, he forgot where he was momentarily, but then a genuine smile appeared on his face. He instantly remembered about Ganondorf and his kindness when no one else would even _begin_ to think of caring about him. It made Ghirahim extremely happy.

Shoving the blanket and sheets off his pale, naked body, Ghirahim got to his feet and went into his bathroom. He did his business before washing his hands while humming a tune to himself. When he left the bathroom, turning off the light, he took a few steps before stopping and jumping in fright.

“Holy Hell-!” Standing not far from the door and waiting for him was Ganondorf. The demon glowered at him. “You scared me, Ganondorf.”

The Gerudo smiled. “My apologies, Ghirahim. I did knock.” Ghirahim shook his head to clear it. “How did you sleep last night?”

Feeling back to his previous cheery self, Ghirahim grinned. “I slept like a baby actually. That was the best night I’ve had since…well ever, ah-hahaaaa!” Ghirahim trailed off before coughing to clear his throat. “What about you? Did you have a good night’s sleep?”

“Yes, I did. I hardly slept when we traveled here together, to keep an eye on you. But now that shouldn’t be a problem.”

Ghirahim nodded. “That’s good.”

There was a moment of silence before Ganondorf said, “Breakfast has been ready since nine this morning, if you’re hungry. But I daresay, you will need something to wear before you go out in public.”

When Ganondorf smirked at this, Ghirahim looked down at himself and realized why. He had nothing on, not even underwear. That was certainly a problem, wasn’t it?

“I don’t have any other clothes, minus the dirty ones you bought for me,” Ghirahim said after looking back up. “So now what?”

“Do not worry, I had a few pairs of clothes commissioned for you. They should be here soon, if the tailors did their jobs right. But for now, you should put your pants back on. They should be fine until your other sets come in.”

“Okay.” Going back into his bathroom, where he had kept his dirty clothes after his bath, Ghirahim pulled on the pants, the hem snapping to his waist. He suddenly froze up, thinking about something all of a sudden. Looking to his right hip, Ghirahim blinked in surprise. Once again, he had forgotten that the red and yellow diamond spike was no longer a part of him. Carefully, he placed his hand to his hip. He expected there to be pain, but all he felt was the pressure of his palm and fingers touching himself. Ganondorf soon appeared in the doorway, to see what was taking Ghirahim so long. When he saw him examining his hip, his eyes narrowed. “…I still can’t believe it’s gone…”

“It must be such a relief, to no longer know that pain.”

Ghirahim looked at the floor. “To be honest, remembering is just as bad as having it…”

Ganondorf definitely couldn’t argue with that. He still very clearly remembered the pain he had felt when he watched his mother die from the desert disease when he was a child. If it wasn’t for his grandmother, he would have gone down a very different path.

“That is certainly true… However, you are not with your abusers anymore.” Ghirahim turned around, looking sad. Smiling softly, Ganondorf placed his hand on his head and ran it down the back of his hair. “You are here, under my love and care now. You will be safe here, I promise.”

Ghirahim smiled weakly. “Thank you.”

“Of course.” Ganondorf turned around. “I will lead you to the dining hall. Volvagia is waiting for us.”

Nodding, Ghirahim followed Ganondorf out of the comfort of his room and then they took the stairs for several flights before reaching large double doors. Ganondorf opened the right one and they stepped inside a vast room with rows upon rows of tables set in an orderly fashion. Ghirahim looked up towards the ceiling and looked around in awe. He had never been in a large room like this before. It was fascinating to be honest. Ghirahim smiled, believing he would get used to this kind of treatment pretty quick. Over at the other end, and spread out on two tables, was platters of all kinds of breakfast foods. Ghirahim’s mouth started to water at all the wonderful smells he was picking up as they walked by. At the end was doors that led into the kitchens.

“Go ahead and find a seat. I will inform Volvagia that you are here. He wanted to meet you since you are bedroom neighbors.”

Ghirahim almost didn’t want to sit, so he held the top of a chair with his hand. “Alright, I’ll be waiting right here then.”

Ganondorf walked to the kitchen doors and walked inside. Turning to face the back of the chair, Ghirahim grabbed the backing with both hands and he tried to will his body to pull the chair out to sit, but he couldn’t. Although he was amazed at the magnificent room, he also felt intimidated to be there. He almost didn’t want to sit still. Not to mention he was _really_ hungry and the food was calling him. A couple minutes later and the kitchen doors opened again and Ganondorf came out, followed by a tall man with flaming red hair and had on a dragon skull mask with curving horns over the top that covered half of his face. Ghirahim turned to them, blinking in wonderment. This new person must be Volvagia. He had as magnificent hair as Ganondorf did and for some reason Ghirahim felt weirdly attracted to that.

Ganondorf and Volvagia stopped a few feet from Ghirahim, the Gerudo smiling. “Volvagia, this is Ghirahim, my new recruit.”

Placing his pointer and middle fingers to his forehead, Volvagia pulled them away in a greeting gesture. “It is nice to meet you, mate.”

Ghirahim was hesitant, but he smiled anyway. “It’s good to meet you too.”

“I hope yer hungry. You can eat as much as ya wan’, there’s plenty.”

“Thanks.”

“Well, I have lunch preparations to deal with. See ya both later.”

Ganondorf smiled at him as he headed back for the kitchen. “Thank you, Volvagia.” The man returned to the kitchen. Ghirahim watched him leave while Ganondorf turned to him. “You really should eat.” Looking at him, Ghirahim nodded, but didn’t move. He was still kind of in awe over the whole situation. His stomach soon growled angrily, making him blush. Ganondorf chuckled at the look. Swallowing his embarrassment down, Ghirahim moved over to the stack of plates and hesitantly picked one up. Ganondorf watched him thoughtfully, knowing full well why he was having trouble filling his plate. “…Would you like to be alone?”

“…That would help.”

“I will see what Volvagia plans to make for dinner tonight then,” Ganondorf said.

He headed for the double doors again, Ghirahim glancing back at him. When the door closed and there was dead silence, the demon took a deep breath, hoping to the Goddesses that he didn’t make a fool of himself once he took the first bite. He feared he would go nuts again like the night with the Pols Voices.

As he filled his plate, Ghirahim felt stupid for worrying so much, but seeing as his life had been pretty shitty and terrible on his mental health, he wasn’t taking this task very well. It was shyness and intimidation that held him back. What seemed like half an hour later, Ghirahim finally sat down and stared at what he had grabbed, which, surprisingly, wasn’t that much. There was a few slices of toast, hash browns, two fairly thick sausage links, some eggs, ham, and just an assortment of unknown foods that looked and smelled good. Now all he had to do was decide what to eat first, which was easier said than done.

Behind the door and peering around the door frame, Ganondorf was watching Ghirahim stare at his breakfast, unmoving. His eyes were narrowed slightly. “It’s alright, Ghirahim,” he whispered. “I promise.”

There was a long pause before Ghirahim finally moved again, picking up a slice of toast first. He took the first bite, chewed well, and swallowed, then paused as he waited for the food to reach his famished stomach. When he didn’t react like with the Pols Voices, he took another bite, then another, and was soon eating at a leisurely pace. Ganondorf continued to watch him, feeling proud of him for accomplishing such a difficult task for someone with horrendous mental wounds. When he knew Ghirahim would be fine, he returned to the kitchen and found Volvagia prepping ingredients for several lunch meals he was going to be making.

“How’s the newbie?” the chef asked.

“He’s eating.” Ganondorf watched him cut up an assortment of meats for a while before speaking again. “Ghirahim has a room next to yours. If you can keep an eye and ear out for him while he’s inside his room, do it. I want to be sure he will be cared for even when I’m not around.”

Volvagia glanced at him out of the corner of his eye, not bothering to stop chopping. “You really _do_ care for him, don’tcha? You’re not really the most affectionate person in the world…”

“Yes, I do, because I know how cruel the world can be to those like Ghirahim and myself. I do not know the full extent of his time in that Goddess-forsaken town, but the mistrust he still has of me is proof of the mental and physical abuse he endured growing up. It will take a lot of time and patience, but I am determined to give Ghirahim the life he deserves.”

Volvagia smiled at Ganondorf. “I believe in ya, mate.”

“Thank you.” Turning around, Ganondorf left the kitchen to check up on Ghirahim. He was still in his chair, having eaten half the food on his plate. He appeared satisfied with everything he was consuming. Ganondorf stopped next to him and watched him shove some ham into his mouth. “How is everything?”

Not bothering to chew the ham much, Ghirahim swallowed it in one gulp, having to swallow extra hard to make it all go down. “Your cooks are amazing!”

Ganondorf smiled at hearing this. “I will pass on the message to them. You should let Volvagia know personally when you see him at your rooms later though.”

“I will.”

Pulling out a chair with one hand, Ganondorf sat down next to Ghirahim. “Keep eating, but I need to discuss something with you.”

“Okay.”

“First and foremost, you will need to work for me as part of my army. You’re probably not aware of it, but I can sense some strong power deep within you, you simply don’t know how to bring it out. I think extensive training will help make it come to fruition.”

Ghirahim paused his eating to look at him. “Do you really think I have something unique about me?”

“Everyone has one very unique thing about them and them alone, Ghirahim,” Ganondorf replied. “It is just a matter of finding out what that is. Starting in a few days, you will begin to turn into one of my obedient soldiers. No matter how long it takes to make you the strongest you can be, I will be there to help you. I have given you a purpose for living, so do not squander it. Is that understood?”

There was a long pause as Ghirahim thought about this proposal. To continue living here, he had to learn to tap into his dormant powers and to fight alongside Ganondorf, no matter the battle. Could Ghirahim really do all of that? After a few seconds, he looked down at his plate, his eyes narrowing.

“I understand but…” Ghirahim sighed, lowering his fork to his plate. “I just don’t know if I can…”

“You never know until you try.”

Ghirahim looked off to the side. “I guess so.”

There was a long moment of silence in the dining hall. Ghirahim had lost his appetite, so he pushed the plate back away from him. Ganondorf soon placed his hand on the top of Ghirahim’s head, making the demon turn and look up at him with despair in his eyes. The Gerudo King was smiling encouragingly at him.

“You can do it, Ghirahim. I know you can…”

They stared silently at each other for a long time after that, Ganondorf never moving his hand away. Ghirahim smiled weakly up at him for a second.

“I will try, Ganondorf.”

“That’s a good boy.” Ganondorf lowered his hand and then stood up. “If you are done eating, I will give you a tour of the castle and the grounds. You need a bit more strength back in your legs anyway.”

“Yes Ganondorf.”

Leaving his partially filled plate behind, Ghirahim stood up, stretched out his legs, arms, and popped his neck, and then followed Ganondorf out of the dining hall to show Ghirahim all that his new home had to offer, far from those terrible human beings.

* * *

After an almost two-hour long tour—Ghirahim needing to be carried for a while—Ganondorf and his new soldier returned to the castle. He showed Ghirahim where he would be training last. The training grounds was huge and spacious, stretching several yards left and right. There were a few Bokoblins and Moblins training with knives and spears and some were sparring or wrestling.

“And this is where you will be training,” Ganondorf explained, like he had done for the rest of the tour. He set Ghirahim down on his feet and then they walked further inside. “Since you can’t do physical training for a few days, I would like you to at least observe the others training, to get a feel for what you will need to be able to do once you start taking on missions. That may not be for a few months from now, but that depends on your progress.” They stopped a few feet from four Bokoblins who were training as a duo tag team against each other. When they saw Ganondorf out of their peripheral vision, they stopped to look at him, wondering what he was there for. They hardly noticed Ghirahim, who looked a bit intimidated. “Good morning Harold, Clark, Nick, Aaron. I was just showing our newest recruit the castle, grounds, and now here. I would like him to observe your training, if that’s alright with you.”

The one closest to them nodded. “Yes master, that’s fine.”

“Thank you, Aaron. By the way, this is Ghirahim. He is a demon and I want you to help him if he ever asks for it. He cannot physically train yet, so I would like him to observe your training for a few days.”

“Yes master.”

After a curt nod, Ganondorf looked at Ghirahim. “Just stay here and watch from a short distance. I will return shortly to retrieve you. I am going to see if the clothing I commissioned for you are ready. Then I have something else to do as well.”

“Alright.”

With a nod, Ganondorf turned around and walked away, leaving a nervous Ghirahim alone with these weird, impish creatures. Aaron stepped forward, holding his hand out.

“It is good to meet you, Ghirahim.” Smiling weakly, Ghirahim shook his hand, feeling slightly embarrassed to be fairly tall compared to Bokoblins. They dropped their hands before Aaron turned to the others. “Ghirahim is going to watch us train while master Ganondorf is away. So let’s get to it.”

Aaron returned to his partner, then the two teams backed away from each other to start over with what they had been doing with their spears. Ghirahim stepped back several feet and sat down, his legs aching. He watched the four Bokoblins attack each other with their spears, noting how they moved and slashed and jabbed with their weapons. They completely ignored Ghirahim, which he figured was a good thing because it meant they didn’t get distracted easily, as he observed like a good little soldier in training.

Meanwhile, Ganondorf had retrieved Ghirahim’s new sets of clothes and placed them in his bedroom on his bed. He then headed for the fifth floor of the castle at a brisk walk, knowing Ghirahim might get too uncomfortable too quickly on his own. A minute and a half later, he entered a large room that was fairly warm inside and partially lit. The sound of a crackling fire and a hammer hitting something that clanged loudly echoed around the room. Ganondorf approached a Black Knight named Dracko without his armor on, and who was the Gerudo King’s personal blacksmith.

“Dracko, I have urgent business to discuss with you.”

“Ah, good morning, Ganondorf,” Dracko said with a very deep, loud voice. “What can I do ye for?”

Ganondorf stopped behind his large anvil. “I need some weapons commissioned for a new recruit. I do not have all the necessary details at this time, but I wanted you to know about him in advance. I also wanted to find out how many commissions are in your queue, so I know how soon I need to give you ideas for these weapons.”

Dracko nodded as he continued to hammer at a spearhead. “I currently have three hundred swords, one hundred and twenty-three spears, and hundreds of other blades that need forgin'. I am going to finish the spears during the next few days. What kinds of weapons do ye want forged?”

“I was thinking along the lines of a few swords, daggers, and throwing knives. I can give you some design ideas within two weeks if that would suffice.”

Dracko finished the spear and then dunked it into a small vat of oil beside him on his left. He left it there as he looked at Ganondorf. “Two weeks is ideal, yes. I will leave the knives and swords for last, which should give you enough time to give me designs.”

“Thank you, Dracko.”

“O’ course Ganondorf. Might I ask who the recruit is?”

“His name is Ghirahim and he is a demon, hence why I would like knives and swords to be commissioned for him. I feel they would suit him best.”

Dracko nodded in understanding. “I await your designs, then.”

Ganondorf left to allow Dracko to finish his work. He returned to the training grounds as quickly as possible, but what he came upon surprised him, but in a pleasing way. Far away and standing near some Bokoblins that were watching him, Ghirahim had a spear in his hands and he was handling it very professionally with both hands. He twirled it through his fingers, spun it around in his hands, changed hands from behind his back without looking, flipped it over his body and catching it from behind and other directions, and was just overall handling the new weapon very well. Ganondorf smirked, finally having proof to his claims that Ghirahim was special.

After a few more neat throws and catches, Ghirahim twirled it around in his right hand and then slammed the butt end into the floor vertically. The Bokoblins were grinning and cheering him on, truly amazed at what he had done. They suddenly stopped when they heard loud clapping far away. Hearing it too, Ghirahim looked over his shoulder and saw Ganondorf approaching them. A blush formed on the demon’s cheeks.

“That was very impressive work, Ghirahim!” Ganondorf stopped behind him, smiling. “Have you used a weapon like this before?” Still kinda stunned that he had been watched by the _real_ impressive person in the room, Ghirahim could only shake his head. The answer just made Ganondorf smile even more. “You have never used a spear before and yet you used it as if you have been training with them for years. You see, I knew I was correct about you. There is definitely something very special in you, my boy. I wouldn’t be surprised if you perfected your training in just a few years.”

“I concur!”

“He did _amazing_ , master Ganondorf!”

“The most impressive hand-eye coordination I have ever seen, sir.”

Ghirahim’s pale face flared red at all the compliments he was getting. In fact, he was so overwhelmed by it that he dropped the spear, turned around, and ran past Ganondorf, making everyone staring go wide-eyed in surprised confusion. Ganondorf turned to the side and saw Ghirahim shove open the door and disappear around the corner. Aaron came towards him in concern.

“Is Ghirahim going to be alright?”

Perking up, Ganondorf turned his head and looked down at Aaron. He stared at him silently for a few seconds before turning completely around. “I certainly hope so, Aaron.”

“Why’d he run?”

“Is that guy coming back?”

“What was _that_ all about?”

Aaron turned on them as Ganondorf walked away. “Shut up and get back to training!”

“Sorry.”

Meanwhile, Ganondorf walked through the castle in search of Ghirahim for a while, having some idea as to why he reacted to the compliments the way he did. The Gerudo King felt terrible for putting the demon in such a position like that. Ghirahim had been too preoccupied with his spear handling to remember how his old townspeople had treated him, so once he was consciously aware of his surroundings, everything came flooding back. Too much exposure to good things had triggered terrible anxiety within Ghirahim and it was all Ganondorf’s fault. From now on, he would train Ghirahim when no one else was around, so that he could concentrate only on getting the training he so rightfully deserved.

“I am sorry for this, Ghirahim,” Ganondorf muttered to himself in his brisk-walking search. “I should have been more mindful of your insecurities…”

Ganondorf was determined to make it up to Ghirahim for his actions. He didn’t expect to cure him of his mental pain and scars, but he would at least be the most supportive master that this world had ever seen…

**Author's Note:**

> I stated this in the main story, but I'm going to state it here too: Ghirahim is not the spirit for the Sword of Demise anymore. When I started writing the main story I didn't know much about Ghirahim until after I wrote a fight between him and Link wielding the Sword of Demise. I had no way of changing this around, so I opted to make Ghirahim his own character


End file.
